Methods of modulating stomata conductance and plant expression constructs for executing same

ABSTRACT

Plant expression construct are provided. According to an embodiment, the plant expression construct comprises a nucleic acid sequence encoding a hexokinase under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element. Also provided are methods of using the constructs and transgenic plants, plant cells and plant parts expressing same.

This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/569,251 filed Dec. 11, 2011, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to methods of modulating stomata conductance and plant expression constructs for executing same.

Stomata are dynamic pores in the impermeable protective cuticle that coats the aerial parts of land plants, which evolved primarily to save water. Stomata, which are comprised of two guard cells and the pore they circumscribe, open at dawn to allow the entry of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) for photosynthesis, at the cost of extensive transpirational water loss. The stomata close when carbon fixation and utilization are less efficient, in order to reduce the loss of water via transpiration (Assmann, 1993). At the mechanistic level, stomata open in response to increases in the osmolarity of the guard cells. These increases in osmolarity are followed by the movement of water into the guard cells, which increases their volume and opens the stomata (Taiz and Zeiger, 1998). Stomatal closure occurs in the opposite manner; as the osmolarity of guard cells is reduced, their volume decreases.

Water scarcity is a serious problem that will be exacerbated by global climate change. Abiotic stresses, especially drought and increased salinity, are primary causes of crop loss worldwide. Moreover, agriculture currently uses over 70% (86% in developing countries) of available freshwater. One of the approaches that may be adopted to save water in agriculture is the development of plants that use less water yet maintain high yields in conditions of water scarcity. As plants lose over 95% of their water via transpiration through stomata, the engineering of stomatal activity is a promising approach to reduce the water requirement of crops and to enhance productivity under stress conditions.

Cominelli et al. Transcription. 2010 July-August; 1(1): 41-45 reviews recent developments in the identification of transcription regulators controlling stomatal movements and involved in stomatal closure.

Additional background art includes

U.S. Pat. No. 7,423,203 teaches a method of increasing plant yield by expressing fungal hexokinase under a seed-specific promoter.

U.S. Patent Application 20090265812 teaches a method of increasing plant tolerance to high temperature stress by expressing hexokinase under a pollen specific promoter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a hexokinase under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a nucleic acid agent for silencing expression of a hexokinase, wherein expression of the nucleic acid agent is under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element is inducible.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element is constitutive.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element is a guard-cell specific promoter.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the guard-cell specific promoter is KST1 promoter.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of regulating plant stomata conductance, the method comprising modulating in the plant the level and/or activity of a hexokinase in a guard cell specific manner, thereby regulating plant conductance.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the modulating is upregulating.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the upregulating is effected by introducing the nucleic acid construct of claim 1 into the plant.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the modulating is downregulating.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the downregulating is effected by introducing into the plant a nucleic acid silencing agent under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of decreasing plant stomata conductance, the method comprising introducing into a cell of a plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby decreasing the stomata conductance of the plant.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of increasing water use efficiency of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing water use efficiency of the plant.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of increasing tolerance of a plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing tolerance of the plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of increasing biomass, vigor or yield of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing the biomass, vigor or yield of the plant.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a method of increasing tolerance of a plant to biotic stress, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing tolerance of the plant to biotic stress.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a transgenic plant or a part thereof comprising the plant expression construct.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided an isolated plant cell or a plant cell culture comprising the plant expression construct.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the part of the transgenic plant is a seed.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the part of the transgenic plant is a leaf.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the seed is a hybrid seed.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the method further comprises growing the plant under water deficient conditions.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the method further comprises growing the plant under salinity.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and/or scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains. Although methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the invention, exemplary methods and/or materials are described below. In case of conflict, the patent specification, including definitions, will control. In addition, the materials, methods, and examples are illustrative only and are not intended to be necessarily limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the invention are herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. With specific reference now to the drawings in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of embodiments of the invention. In this regard, the description taken with the drawings makes apparent to those skilled in the art how embodiments of the invention may be practiced.

In the drawings:

FIGS. 1A-C are graphs showing that sucrose stimulates stomatal closure via hexokinase. FIG. 1A—Representative light microscopy images of stomata taken from epidermal imprints 3 h after treatment with 100 mM sorbitol or 100 mM sucrose (white bar=20 μm). B, Stomatal response to sucrose in wild-type (WT) and AtHXK1-expressing plants (HK4) was assayed with intact leaves immersed for 3 h in artificial apoplastic sap (Wilkinson and Davies, 1997) containing 100 mM sorbitol (as an osmotic control), 100 mM Suc or 100 mM sucrose together with 20 mM of the hexokinase inhibitor N-acetyl-glucoseamine (NAG). Epidermal imprints were then taken and stomatal aperture was measured. C, The stomatal responses of WT plants to the different sugar combinations were assayed as described in (FIG. 1B), with 200 mM mannitol serving as an additional osmotic control. The data shown in FIGS. 1B, C are means of 300 stomata from six independent biological repeats±SE. Different letters indicate a significant difference (t test, P<0.05).

FIGS. 2A-D show that elevated expression of hexokinase enhances stomatal closure and decreases transpiration. Stomatal aperture (FIG. 2A) and stomatal conductance (FIG. 2B) were determined for control (WT) and transgenic plants expressing different levels of AtHXK1 (HK38>HK4>HK37) (Dai et al., 1999). Aperture data are means of 200 stomata from four independent repeats±SE. Stomatal conductance data are means of six independent repeats±SE. Different letters indicate a significant difference (t test, P<0.05). FIG. 2C—The rate of transpiration normalized to the total leaf area was monitored simultaneously and continuously throughout the day and the data are given as the means±SE for each 10^(th) sampling point (n=6). FIG. 2D-A negative correlation was observed between whole-plant relative daily transpiration and relative hexokinase-phosphorylation activity. The transpiration data were normalized to the total leaf area and the amount of water taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100%. WT hexokinase activity was set to 100%.

FIGS. 3A-E show that AtHXK1 reduces transpiration primarily when expressed in leaves. Reciprocal grafting (FIG. 3A) and triple-grafting (FIG. 3D) procedures were performed at the seedling stage and plants were photographed and used for transpiration measurements about 4 weeks after grafting. The yellow arrows and brackets indicate the location of the grafts. FIG. 3B-Whole-plant relative daily transpiration of reciprocal-grafted plants. Data were normalized to the total leaf area and the amount of water taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100%. Data are given as means of four independent repeats±SE. Different letters indicate a significant difference (t test, P<0.05). FIG. 3C—Transpiration rate normalized to the total leaf area of reciprocal-grafted plants was monitored simultaneously and continuously throughout the day. The data are given as the means±SE for each 10^(th) sampling point (n=4). FIG. 3E—Relative daily transpiration of whole triple-grafted plants calculated as in (FIG. 3B).

FIGS. 4A-B are graphs showing that suppression of HXK inhibits stomatal closure in response to Suc. FIG. 4A—Quantitative measurements of the real-time expression of tomato LeHXK1-3 genes in wild-type tomato (WT) and in two independent tomato lines with antisense suppression of HXK, αHK1 and αHK2. Data are means of three independent biological repeats±SE. Asterisks denote significant differences relative to the WT (t test, P<0.05). FIG. 4B-Stomatal response to Suc in WT, two antisense (αHK1 and αHK2) and AtHXK1-expressing (HK4) lines was assayed in intact leaves that were immersed in artificial apoplastic sap (Wilkinson and Davies, 1997) containing 100 mM Suc for 3 h. Data are given as means of 400 stomata from eight independent biological repeats±SE. Different letters indicate a significant difference (t test, P<0.05).

FIG. 5 is a graph showing that glucose (Glc) and sugars that can be phosphorylated, but not metabolized, stimulate stomatal closure. Stomatal responses to different sugars were assayed in intact leaves of wild-type plants. The leaves were immersed for 3 h in artificial apoplastic sap (Wilkinson and Davies, 1997) containing mannitol (as an osmotic control), Glc, 2-deoxyglucose (2-dG) or mannose. Epidermal imprints were then taken and stomatal aperture was measured. Data are given as means of 400 stomata from eight independent biological repeats±SE. Different letters indicate a significant difference (t test, P<0.05).

FIGS. 6A-F show that Suc stimulates ABA-dependent NO production in guard cells that is mediated by HXK. FIGS. 6A-B—Nitric oxide (NO) levels were monitored in guard cells from epidermal peels of wild-type (WT) and AtHXK1-expressing (HK4) plants using the fluorescent NO indicator dye DAF-2DA. Relative fluorescence levels of guard cells (white bars) and stomatal apertures (black bars) were determined after 30 min of treatment with MES buffer (control) or MES containing either 100 mM Suc or 100 mM sorbitol as an osmotic control. Representative fluorescence images are shown above the fluorescence columns (bar=10 μm). Data are given as means±SE of 90 stomata (FIG. 6A) or 60 stomata (FIG. 6B) for each treatment with three to four independent biological repeats of each treatment. FIG. 6C—Relative fluorescence levels of WT guard cells were determined after 30 min of treatment with MES buffer (control), MES containing 20 mM of the hexokinase inhibitor N-acetyl-glucoseamine (NAG), or 100 mM Suc with or without 20 mM NAG. Representative fluorescence images are shown above the fluorescence columns (bar=10 μm). Data are given as means of 60 stomata from three independent biological repeats per treatment±SE. FIG. 6D—Confocal images of NO production in guard cells of epidermal peels treated with 20 mM NAG only (left), 30 min after the addition of 100 mM Suc (middle) and 30 min after the NAG was washed out with 100 mM Suc (right). The assay was conducted as the same epidermal strip was being photographed (bar=20 μm). FIG. 6E—Relative fluorescence levels of guard cells from an epidermal strip treated as in (FIG. 6D). Data are given as means of 40-60 stomata±SE. FIG. 6F—Confocal images of NO production in guard cells of epidermal peels of Sitiens (ABA-deficient mutants) after 30 min of treatment with MES buffer containing either 100 mM Suc (left) or 100 μM ABA (right); bar=10 μm. Different lower-case letters in (FIGS. 6A-C, E) indicate a significant difference among the treatments with respect to the fluorescence data and different upper-case letters in (FIG. 6A) indicate a significant difference among the treatments with respect to the stomatal aperture data (t test, P<0.05).

FIGS. 7A-E show that GFP expression under the control of the KST1 promoter is specific to guard cells. FIG. 7A—Confocal images of wild-type (WT) (panels 1-4) and transgenic tomato leaves (panels 5-8) of plants with guard-cell specific expression of GFP (designated GCGFP) under the control of the KST1 promoter. Panels 1 and 5 are images of GFP fluorescence (stained green), panels 2 and 6 are chlorophyll autofluorescence (stained magenta), panels 3 and 7 are white light images and panels 4 and 8 are merged images. B-E, Confocal images of WT (left) and transgenic Arabidopsis GCGFP plants (right). Images were taken from leaves (FIGS. 7B and C, bars=50 μm and 5 μm, respectively), hypocotyls (FIG. 7D, bar=100 μm) and roots (FIG. 7E, bar=50 μm). All panels are merged images of white light, chlorophyll autofluorescence (magenta) and GFP fluorescence (green).

FIGS. 8A-F show that guard cell-specific expression of AtHXK1 induces stomatal closure and reduces transpiration of tomato and Arabidopsis plants. FIG. 8A—Representative images of wild-type (WT) and two independent transgenic tomato lines expressing AtHXK1 specifically in guard cells (GCHXK7 and 12). FIGS. 8B and C—Stomatal conductance (g_(s,)) and whole-plant relative daily transpiration of WT and two independent transgenic tomato lines (GCHXK7 and 12). Stomatal conductance data are given as means of four independent repeats±SE. Transpiration data were normalized to the total leaf area and the amount of water taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100%. Data from three consecutive days are presented. Data for each day are given as means of four independent repeats±SE. FIG. 8D—Representative images of WT Arabidopsis (Col. ecotype) and two independent transgenic lines expressing AtHXK1 specifically in guard cells (GCHXK1 and 2). FIGS. 8E and F—Stomatal conductance and transpiration measurements of WT, two independent transgenic Arabidopsis lines, GCHXK1 and GCHXK2 (Col. ecotype), and of the gin 2-1 (AtHXK1 null mutant, Ler. ecotype). Arrows indicate increased or decreased conductance and transpiration relative to the WT. Data are given as means (±SE) of 8 and 12 independent repeats for the GCHXK and gin2-1 lines, respectively. Asterisks denote significant differences relative to the WT (t test, P<0.05).

FIG. 9 shows that GFP expression under the control of the FBPase promoter is specific to mesophyll cells. Confocal images of transgenic tomato and Arabidopsis leaves of plants with mesophyll specific expression of GFP (designated MCGFP) under the control of the FBPase promoter. Images are merge of GFP fluorescence (stained green) and white light images (bar=100 μm). Fluorescence is specific to mesophyll cells.

FIGS. 10A-D are graphs showing that elevated expression of hexokinase in guard cells reduces transpiration while photosynthesis remains unchanged, thus improving instantaneous water use efficiency. Gas exchange analysis of GCHXK and WT plants was assayed using a Li-6400 portable gas-exchange system (LI-COR), stomatal conductance (FIG. 10A), transpiration (FIG. 10B), photosynthesis (FIG. 10C) and instantaneous water use efficiency (IVVUE, FIG. 10D) were measured and calculated under favorable growth conditions. Data are mean±SE (n=10 for WT and n=20 for 10 different transgenic lines, two measurements each). Star denotes significant difference (t test, P<0.05).

FIGS. 11A-C show that elevated expression of hexokinase in guard cells reduces whole plant transpiration and increases water use efficiency. FIGS. 11A-B—Whole plant relative daily transpiration (RDT) was analyzed using the large-scale lysimeter system as described in Example 1. WT and two GCHXK transgenic lines (GCHXK7, GCHXK12) were put on scales. Transpiration and total plant weight were documented every 3 minutes during the experiment in which plants were grown under normal conditions for 10 days, than subjected to drought stress for 3 days, followed by recovery irrigation process for additional 7 days. Data were normalized to the total plant weight and the amount taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100% and served as a reference for the temporal variations in the potential transpiration. FIG. 11A—Day by day Relative daily transpiration during the whole experiment. Data are means of four independent repeats±SEM FIG. 11B—Relative daily transpiration of selected days in each treatment. Data are means of four independent repeats±SEM; Star denotes significant difference (t test, P<0.05). FIG. 11C—Water use efficiency was calculated by the ratio between plant weight accumulation and plant water loss, each day per each plant. Data are means of four independent repeats±SEM; Star denotes significant difference (t test, P<0.05). (A-magnified) RDT of WT and GCHXK plants during the shift from normal irrigation (day 10) to drought conditions (day 11). Red and green arrows indicate RDT decline (represented by slope) of WT and GCHXK respectively after plants were exposed to drought.

FIGS. 12A-F show that elevated expression of hexokinase in guard cells reduces transpiration rate and stomatal conductance throughout the day, while displaying normal growth. Whole plant relative transpiration rate (FIG. 12A) and stomatal conductance (g_(s), FIG. 12B) were analyzed using the large-scale lysimeter system as described in methods. WT and two GCHXK transgenic lines were put on scales. Transpiration rate, g_(s,) light intensity (FIG. 12E), vapor pressure deficit (VPD, FIG. 12F) were simultaneously documented every 3 minutes during the experiment in which plants were grown under normal conditions. Data for FIGS. 12A and B were normalized to the total leaf area and the amount taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100% and served as a reference for the temporal variations in the potential transpiration. FIG. 12C—Total plant leaf area, FIG. 12D—Total plant weight.

FIG. 13 show transpiration rate of WT and GCHXK plants under drought conditions. Whole plant transpiration rate was analyzed using the large-scale lysimeter system as described in Example 1. WT (blue) and GCHXK transgenic lines (green) were put on scales. Transpiration rates were documented for 9 days after exposing the plants to gradually increased—drought conditions, by fully stopping the irrigation. The rate of transpiration normalized to the total leaf area was monitored simultaneously and continuously throughout the day and the data are given as the means±SE for each sampling point. Data were normalized to the total leaf area and the amount taken up by the neighboring submerged fixed-size wick each day, which was set to 100% and served as a reference for the temporal variations in the potential transpiration. Star denotes the day in which transpiration transition between WT and GCHXK had occurred.

FIGS. 14A-B show the yield production of transgenic plants expressing hexokinase specifically in guard cells. FIG. 14A—Number of fruits collected from WT and GCHXK plants (4 independent lines). FIG. 14B—Representative images of wild-type (WT) and transgenic tomato plant expressing AtHXK1 specifically in guard cells (GCHXK7).

FIGS. 15A-C show the yield production of transgenic plants expressing hexokinase specifically in guard cells, under limited water-supply conditions. FIG. 15A—Plants were grown under controlled commercial greenhouse conditions, following expert instructions with regard to growing procedures (Soil system, irrigation, fertilization etc.). Seedlings were planted in a mixed up order threw out the entire planting-row and the same order was kept in each row. Each row was irrigated differentially; either fully (100%) or partially (75%, 50% and 25% irrigation regimes). Since the initial fruit breaker stage, fruits were collected, counted and weighted for each individual plant for 4 weeks time. Cumulative fruit weight (FIG. 15B) and fruit number (FIG. 15C) of WT (blue) and GCHXK (green) plants were than averaged for each irrigation regime. Blue and green arrows indicates decreased fruit weight of WT and GCHXK plants respectively when shifting from 75% to 50% irrigation.

FIGS. 16A-F show that guard cell-specific expression of AtHXK1 induces stomatal closure, reduces transpiration and increases leaf temperature without lowering photosynthesis or mesophyll conductance for CO₂, thus enhances water use efficiency of Arabidopsis plants. Stomatal conductance (FIG. 16A), transpiration (FIG. 16B), photosynthesis (FIG. 16C) and mesophyll conductance for CO₂ (gm, FIG. 16D) measurements of WT and transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressing AtHXK1 specifically in guard cells (GCHXK). FIG. 16E—instantaneous water use efficiency (IWUE) of WT and GCHXK plants. FIG. 16F—Leaf temperatures (warmer leaves—stomatal closure) of WT and GCHXK plants were determined using ThermaCam researcher pro 2.10 software. Data points are the means±SE from 6 biological repeats in FIGS. 16A-E and of 12 biological repeats in FIG. 16F. An asterisk denotes a significant difference relative to the wild type (t test, P<0.05).

FIGS. 17A-B are schematic maps of binary vector pGreen0029 containing KST1 promoter, AtHXK1 cDNA (FIG. 17A) or GFP (FIG. 17B) and a terminator: Vector also contains nos-Kan and neomycin phosphotransferase II (NptH) genes as selectable markers for bacteria and plant transformation.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to methods of modulating stomata conductance and plant expression constructs for executing same.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily limited in its application to the details set forth in the following description or exemplified by the Examples. The invention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways.

Water is the major factor limiting the growth and development of many land plants. Stomata, composed of two guard cells, are the chief gates controlling plants' water loss. Many environmental and physiological stimuli control stomatal opening, but they all function through the regulation of guard-cell osmolarity. Increased guard-cell osmolarity leads to the opening of the stomata and decreased osmolarity causes the stomata to close. The prevailing paradigm is that sucrose acts as an osmoticum in the guard cells, thereby contributing to the opening of the stomata.

While conceiving the present invention, the present inventors have found that contrary to the prevailing paradigm, sucrose closes stomata via a non-osmotic mechanism (see Example 2). Furthermore, the guard cells' response to sucrose is dependent on the sugar-sensing enzyme hexokinase (HXK), which triggers the abscisic acid-signaling pathway within the guard cells, leading to stomatal closure.

Thus, while reducing the present invention to practice, the present inventors have found that modulation of hexokinase activity or expression correlates with stomatal aperture.

As is illustrated herein below and in the Examples section which follows, the present inventors have overexpressed HXK in the stomata of tomato plants (in a guard-cell specific manner). Surprisingly, while photosynthesis remained unchanged (FIG. 10C), stomatal conductance (indicating stomatal aperture, FIG. 10B) and transpiration (FIG. 10A) were reduced. Similar results were obtained while monitoring the same parameters all day long (FIGS. 12A-D). Importantly, by measuring total plant leaf area and weight (FIGS. 12C and 12D respectively), the present inventors discovered that even though plants have consumed less water (FIG. 12A), growth was not impaired, and was even improved. Saving water without affecting plant growth improves whole plant water use efficiency. Elevated expression of hexokinase in guard cells improves yield production (FIGS. 14A-B) even under limited water supply (FIGS. 15A-C). Similar results were observed in Arabidopsis. These results demonstrate that the same transgenic insertion of hexokinase under guard-cell specific promoter used in the case of Tomato (Solanaceae family) is universally applicable while affecting stomata and increases water use efficiency in the case of Arabidopsis (Brassicaceae family) as well, and that this technique could be implemented in other species as well.

Unlike previous studies, which relied on correlations between sucrose content and stomatal aperture, this study took a functional approach to the examination of the effects of sucrose and its cleavage products on stomatal behavior. It is now proven that sucrose stimulates a guard cell-specific response that is mediated by HXK and ABA and leads to stomatal closure. Without being bound to theory it is suggested that this response presents a natural feedback mechanism aimed at reducing transpiration and conserving water under excess of photosynthesis, thus coordinating between photosynthesis and transpiration.

Thus, according to an aspect of the invention there is provided a method of regulating plant stomata conductance, the method comprising modulating in the plant the level and/or activity of a hexokinase in a guard cell specific manner, thereby regulating stomata conductance and plant transpiration.

As used herein the phrase “stomata conductance” refers to gaseous exchange through the stomata pore complex. Stomata conductance is regulated by stomata aperture. Stomatal conductance affects plant transpiration and therefore the present methodology according to this aspect of the invention also regulated plant transpiration.

As used herein the phrase “regulating plant stomata conductance” refers to increase or decrease in stomata conductance. The increase or decrease may be by at least 2%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80% or more say 90% or 100% (e.g., 20-40%).

As used herein the term “hexokinase”, abbreviated as HXK, and referred to herein as “the transgene” or “the polypeptide”, refers to the enzyme that typically phosphorylates hexoses (six-carbon sugars), forming hexose phosphate and having the E.C. Number 2.7.1.1. HXK as used herein also refers to hexokinase-like (HKL) protein that binds hexose and transmits a signal independent of its kinase (hexose phosphorylation) activity.

Hexokinases according to the present teachings may be about 100 kD in size as of most multicellular organisms (e.g., mammalian and plants). They consist of two halves (N and C terminal), which share much sequence homology. This suggests an evolutionary origin by duplication and fusion of a 50 kD ancestral hexokinase similar.

The hexokinase may be naturally occurring or may comprise/consist of a synthetic sequence (i.e., man-made) as long as it retains a hexokinase activity.

Due to their high conservation level, the hexokinase of the present invention can be of a plant- or an animal origin. According to a specific embodiment, the hexokinase is a plant hexokinase.

The hexokinases can be categorized according to their cellular localization. Thus, the HXKs may be associated with the mitochondria, associated with or within plastids or present in the cytosol. To date, all of the HXKs examined in eudicots have been found to have either a plastidic signal peptide (type A) or an N-terminal membrane anchor domain (type B), however, cytosolic hexokinases are also contemplated for use according to the present teachings. According to a specific embodiment, the hexokinase is a type B (mitochondrial associated) HXK.

As used herein “a hexokinase activity” refers to the ability of the enzyme to regulate stomata conductance. The enzyme may bind hexose and stimulate the abscisic acid (ABA) pathway which controls stomata conductance. The activity may be kinase independent.

Non limiting examples of hexokinases which are contemplated according to the present teachings are provided in Table 1 herein below.

TABLE 1 Hexokinase genes and their physiological function. Accession Type/ no. Intracellular Physiological Species Gene (SEQ ID NO:) localization function References Eudicots Arabidopsis AtHXK1 AT4G29130 Type B Glc sensing (Jang et al., 1997; Dai et al., thaliana (SEQ ID NOs: M, N PCD 1999; Yanagisawa et al., 11 and 12) Mediates sugar and 2003; Moore et al., 2003; hormonal interactions Leon and Sheen, 2003; Kim Growth and et al., 2006; Pourtau et al., development 2006; Cho et al., 2006a; Photosynthetic gene Rolland et al., 2006; Chen, repression 2007; Aki et al., 2007; Transpiration Balasubramanian et al., Actin filament 2007, 2008; Sarowar et al., reorganization 2008; Karve et al., 2008; Ju Oxidative stress et al., 2009; Karve et al., response 2010; Kushwah et al., 2011; Pathogen resistance Kelly et al., 2012) Directional root growth Leaf senescence AtHXK2 AT2G19860 Type B Glc sensing (Jang et al., 1997; Kim et (SEQ ID NOs: M PCD al., 2006; Karve et al., 13 and 14) Photosynthetic gene 2008) repression AtHXK3 AT1G47840 Type A Glc sensing (Claeyssen and Rivoal, (SEQ ID NOs: P Abiotic stress 2007; Karve et al., 2008; 15 and 16) response Zhang et al., 2010) AtHKL1 AT1G50460 Type B Growth (Claeyssen and Rivoal, (SEQ ID NOs: M Root hair 2007; Karve et al., 2008; 17 and 18) development Karve and Moore, 2009; Mediates Glc- Karve et al., 2012) ethylene crosstalk Abiotic stress response AtHKL2 AT3G20040 Type B (Karve et al., 2008) (SEQ ID NOs: M 19 and 20) AtHKL3 AT4G37840 Type B Abiotic stress (Claeyssen and Rivoal, (SEQ ID NOs: M response 2007; Karve et al., 2008) 21 and 22) Tomato SlHXK1 AJ401153 Type B (Damari-Weissler et al., (Solanum (SEQ ID NOs: M 2006) lycopersicum) 23 and 24) SlHXK2 AF208543 Type B (Menu et al., 2001; Damari- (SEQ ID NOs: M Weissler et al., 2006) 25 and 26) SlHXK3 DQ056861 Type B (Kandel-Kfir et al., 2006) (SEQ ID NOs: M 27 and 28) SlHXK4 DQ056862 Type A (Kandel-Kfir et al., 2006) (SEQ ID NOs: P 29 and 30) Solanum ScHK2 DQ177440 ND (Claeyssen et al., 2006) chacoense (SEQ ID NOs: 31 and 32) Potato StHXK1 X94302 (SEQ ND Glc sensing (Veramendi et al., 1999; (Solanum ID NOs: 33 Leaves starch content Veramendi et al., 2002) tuberosum) and 34) StHXK2 AF106068 ND Glc sensing (Veramendi et al., 2002) (SEQ ID NOs: 35 and 36) Tobacco NtHXK2 AY553215 Type A (Giese et al., 2005) (Nicotiana (SEQ ID NOs: P tabacum/ 37 and 38) benthamiana) NbHXK1 AY286011 Type B Plant growth (Kim et al., 2006; Sarowar (SEQ ID NOs: M PCD et al., 2008) 39 and 40) Oxidative-stress resistance Sunflower HaHXK1 DQ835563 ND Seed development (Troncoso-Ponce et al., (Helianthus (SEQ ID NOs: 2011) annuus) 41 and 42) Populus PtHXK1 XP_002325031 Type B Glc sensing (Karve et al., 2010) trichocarpa (SEQ ID NOs: M 43 and 44) Grape VvHXK1 JN118544 ND (Yu et al., 2012) (Vitis vinifera VvHXK2 JN118545 ND (Yu et al., 2012) L. cv. Cabernet Sauvignon) Spinach SoHXK1 AF118132 Type B (Wiese et al., 1999; (Spinacia (SEQ ID NOs: M Damari-Weissler et al., oleracea) 45 and 46) 2007) Monocots Rice OsHXK1 DQ116383 C, N (Cho et al., 2006a; Cheng et (Oryza sativa) (SEQ ID NOs: al., 2011) 47 and 48) OsHXK2 DQ116384 Type B (Cheng et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M 49 and 50) OsHXK3 DQ116385 Type B (Cheng et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M 51 and 52) OsHXK4 DQ116386 Type A (Cho et al., 2006a; Cheng et (SEQ ID NOs: P al., 2011) 53 and 54) OsHXK5 DQ116387 Type B Glc sensing (Cho et al., 2009a; Cheng et (SEQ ID NOs: M, N Photosynthetic gene al., 2011) 55 and 56) repression Shoot growth OsHXK6 DQ116388 Type B Glc sensing (Aki and Yanagisawa, (SEQ ID NOs: M, N Photosynthetic gene 2009; Cho et al., 2009a; 57 and 58) repression Cheng et al., 2011) Shoot growth OsHXK7 DQ116389 C, N (Cho et al., 2006a; Cheng et (SEQ ID NOs: al., 2011) 59 and 60) OsHXK8 DQ116390 C, N (Cheng et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: 61 and 62) OsHXK9 DQ116391 Type B (Cheng et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M 63 and 64) OsHXK10 DQ116392 C Pollen germination (Xu et al., 2008; Cheng et (SEQ ID NOs: and/or al., 2011) 65 and 66) M Sorghum SbHXK3 XM_002459027 Type B No Glc sensing role (Karve et al., 2010) (Sorghum (SEQ ID NOs: M bicolor) 67 and 68) SbHXK8 XM_002454982 C (Karve et al., 2010) (SEQ ID NOs: 69 and 70) Wheat HXK AY974231 ND Controls triose (Sun et al., 2006) (Triticum (SEQ ID NOs: phosphate/phosphate aestivum) 71 and 72) translocation Lycophytes Spike moss SmHXK3 26000047 * C Glc sensing (Karve et al., 2010) (Selaginella SmHXK5 57.357.1 * C (Karve et al., 2010) mollendorffii) Bryophytes Moss PpHXK1 AY260967 Type A Filamentous type and (Olsson et al., 2003; (Physcomitrella (SEQ ID NOs: P growth Thelander et al., 2005) patens) 73 and 74) PpHXK2 XM_001784578 Type B (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M, P 75 and 76) PpHXK3 XM_001784282 Type B (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M, P 77 and 78) PpHXK4 XM_001760896 Type C (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: C, N 79 and 80) PpHXK5 XM_001766381 Type A (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: P 81 and 82) PpHXK6 XM_001762899 Type A (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: P 83 and 84) PpHXK7 XM_001754096 Type B (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M, P 85 and 86) PpHXK8 XM_001752177 Type B (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M, P 87 and 88) PpHXK9 XM_001770125 Type D (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M 89 and 90) PpHXK10 XM_001776713 Type D (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M 91 and 92) PpHXK11 XM_001779426 Type D (Nilsson et al., 2011) (SEQ ID NOs: M, P 93 and 94) Type A—localized in plastid stroma. Type B—associated with the mitochondria. Type C—localized in the cytosol and nucleus. Type D—associated with the mitochondria, different from type B in sequence. M—mitochondria associated. P—plastid. N—nucleus. C—cytosol. ND—not determined. PCD—programmed cell death. Glc—glucose. *Joint Genome Institute-Selaginella moellendorffii v1.0.

As mentioned, the HXK sequence may be naturally occurring or artificially generated (e.g., codon-optimized) according to the intended use.

According to a specific embodiment, modulating the activity or expression of HXK refers to upregulating the activity or expression which results in reduction of stomatal conductance. Upregulating can be by at least 5%, 10%, 20, %, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70% 80% or more, say 90% or even 100%, as compared to hexokinase expression or activity in a similar cell of the same plant species, growth conditions and developmental stage (e.g., wild-type (WT) plant).

As mentioned, upregulation of hexokinase activity or expression in a guard-cell specific manner has a number of advantages in crop plants and vegetables farming.

Thus, the present inventors have shown that upregulation of HXK in a guard-cell specific manner decreases stomata aperture and conductance (without affecting photosynthesis), improves plant's water use efficiency, thereby increasing plant's tolerance to drought, and overall increases plants vigor, biomass or yield (under stress or optimal growth conditions). Likewise, plants expressing HXK in a guard-cell specific manner are tolerant to salinity stress. It is appreciated that Water are taken up (soaked) by plants as a result of the difference between water potential in the air and within the plants. This difference is termed vapor pressure deficit (VPD). The driving force of soaking water from the ground is the VPD. Higher VPD—the greater is the force. Yet, when the stomata are partially closed, the effect of VPD is lowered and less water is being taken up by the plant. In that case, the plant will take less salt from the ground and will be less affected. The present teachings have also an unprecedented impact on the tolerance of plants to biotic stress. Many human and plant pathogens such as bacteria and fungi, invade plants via the stomata (see for Example Kroupitski et al. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 2009 6076-6086 teaching that Salmonella enteric internalizes in leaves via open stomata). Not only does the stomata allow easy entrance, but also serve as good environment for attracting the pathogens by the accumulation of sugars near the guard cells when the stomata is open. Indeed, the present inventors have observed reduced fungi and bacteria infections in plants with high expression of HXK (not shown).

Alternatively or additionally, the present teachings can also be employed towards imparting the plant with a tolerance to temperature stress (heat or cold). For instance, plants expressing high levels of HXK in a guard cell specific manner are expected to exhibit extended heat and cold resistance with regard to fruit setting. Pollen development and germination are sensitive to heat and cold, most likely due to perturbation of sugar metabolism. It is suggested that during heat stress less sugars are being carried toward the pollen grains (and other sink tissues as well) since most of the water is transpired through the stomata. According to the present teachings, when less water is transpired through the stomata so then more water is available for sugar transport in the phloem. That may impart resistance to temperature stress (e.g., heat) thereby allowing production of viable pollen grains.

Alternatively or additionally, the present teachings can be employed towards prevention of blossom end rot (BER). BER is a visible physiological damage that affects many crops such as tomato, eggplants, pepper, melon and many more. BER happens mainly under heat and water stress. It is now suggested that under such conditions, most of the water is transpired and less water is available to carry sugars, minerals and ions toward the fruits. Accordingly, lowering transpiration may allocate more water carrying more sugars, minerals and ions toward the fruits and other sink tissues (Nikinma et al. 2012 Plant, Cell and Environment 2012 1-15). BER is determined by the percentage of fruits that exhibit visible or detectable rot (physical damage) on the fruit. BER prevention means lowering the percentage of fruits with BER.

Thus, according to an exemplary embodiment the present teachings can be used to increase biomass, vigor or yield of a plant.

As used herein the phrase “plant yield” refers to the amount (e.g., as determined by weight or size) or quantity (numbers) of tissues or organs produced per plant or per growing season. Hence increased yield could affect the economic benefit one can obtain from the plant in a certain growing area and/or growing time.

It should be noted that a plant yield can be affected by various parameters including, but not limited to, plant biomass; plant vigor; growth rate; seed yield; seed or grain quantity; seed or grain quality; oil yield; content of oil, starch and/or protein in harvested organs (e.g., seeds, fruits or vegetative parts of the plant); number of flowers (florets) per panicle (expressed as a ratio of number of filled seeds over number of primary panicles); harvest index; number of plants grown per area; number and size of harvested organs per plant and per area; number of plants per growing area (density); number of harvested organs in field; total leaf area; carbon assimilation and carbon partitioning (the distribution/allocation of carbon within the plant); resistance to shade; number of harvestable organs (e.g. seeds), seeds per pod, weight per seed; and modified architecture [such as increase stalk diameter, thickness or improvement of physical properties (e.g. elasticity)].

As used herein the phrase “seed yield” refers to the number or weight of the seeds per plant, seeds per pod, or per growing area or to the weight of a single seed, or to the oil extracted per seed. Hence seed yield can be affected by seed dimensions (e.g., length, width, perimeter, area and/or volume), number of (filled) seeds and seed filling rate and by seed oil content. Hence increase seed yield per plant could affect the economic benefit one can obtain from the plant in a certain growing area and/or growing time; and increase seed yield per growing area could be achieved by increasing seed yield per plant, and/or by increasing number of plants grown on the same given area.

The term “seed” (at times referred to as “grain” or “kernel”) as used herein refers to a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat (usually with some stored food), the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant. The seed may be a hybrid seed or a homozygous line.

The phrase “oil content” as used herein refers to the amount of lipids in a given plant organ, either the seeds (seed oil content) or the vegetative portion of the plant (vegetative oil content) and is typically expressed as percentage of dry weight (10% humidity of seeds) or wet weight (for vegetative portion).

It should be noted that oil content is affected by intrinsic oil production of a tissue (e.g., seed, fruit, vegetative portion), as well as the mass or size of the oil-producing tissue per plant or per growth period.

In one embodiment, increase in oil content of the plant can be achieved by increasing the size/mass of a plant's tissue(s) which comprise oil per growth period. Thus, increased oil content of a plant can be achieved by increasing the yield, growth rate, biomass and vigor of the plant.

As used herein the phrase “plant biomass” refers to the amount (e.g., measured in grams of air-dry tissue) of a tissue produced from the plant in a growing season, which could also determine or affect the plant yield or the yield per growing area. An increase in plant biomass can be in the whole plant or in parts thereof such as aboveground (harvestable) parts, fruit biomass, vegetative biomass, roots and seeds.

As used herein the phrase “growth rate” refers to the increase in plant organ/tissue size per time (can be measured in cm² per day).

As used herein the phrase “plant vigor” refers to the amount (measured by weight) of tissue produced by the plant in a given time. Hence increased vigor could determine or affect the plant yield or the yield per growing time or growing area. In addition, early vigor (seed and/or seedling) results in improved field stand.

It should be noted that a plant yield can be determined under stress (e.g., abiotic stress) and/or non-stress (normal) conditions. It is contemplated herein that yield, vigor or biomass of the plant expressing the HXK in a guard cell-specific manner is increased as compared to that of wild-type plant (not expressing said HXK) under stress or non-stressed conditions.

As used herein, the phrase “non-stress conditions” (or normal or optimal as referred to herein) refers to the growth conditions (e.g., water, temperature, light-dark cycles, humidity, salt concentration, fertilizer concentration in soil, nutrient supply such as nitrogen, phosphorous and/or potassium), that do not significantly go beyond the everyday climatic and other abiotic conditions that plants may encounter, and which allow optimal growth, metabolism, reproduction and/or viability of a plant at any stage in its life cycle (e.g., in a crop plant from seed to a mature plant and back to seed again). Persons skilled in the art are aware of normal soil conditions and climatic conditions for a given plant in a given geographic location. It should be noted that while the non-stress conditions may include some mild variations from the optimal conditions (which vary from one type/species of a plant to another), such variations do not cause the plant to cease growing without the capacity to resume growth.

As mentioned increased yield can be under non-stress conditions or abiotic/biotic stress conditions.

The phrase “abiotic stress” as used herein refers to any adverse effect on metabolism, growth, reproduction and/or viability of a plant. Accordingly, abiotic stress can be induced by suboptimal environmental growth conditions such as, for example, salinity, water deprivation, flooding, freezing, low or high temperature (i.e., cold or heat), heavy metal toxicity, anaerobiosis, nutrient deficiency, atmospheric pollution or UV irradiation.

The phrase “abiotic stress tolerance” as used herein refers to the ability of a plant to endure an abiotic stress without suffering a substantial alteration in metabolism, growth, productivity and/or viability.

As used herein the phrase “water use efficiency (WUE)” refers to the level of organic matter produced per unit of water consumed by the plant, i.e., the dry weight of a plant in relation to the plant's water use, e.g., the biomass produced per unit transpiration.

Similarly “biotic stress” refers to stress that occurs as a result of damage done to plants by other living organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites.

Upregulation of HXK in a guard-cell specific manner can be used to remedy any of the aforementioned conditions and to improve plants performance overall. Thus, upregulation of the HXK can be effected by expressing an exogenous polynucleotide encoding HXK in the plant in a guard-cell specific manner.

The phrase “expressing within the plant an exogenous polynucleotide encoding HXK” as used herein refers to upregulating the expression level of an exogenous polynucleotide encoding an HXK polypeptide within the plant by introducing the exogenous polynucleotide into a plant cell or plant and expressing by recombinant means, as further described herein below.

As used herein “expressing” refers to expression at the mRNA and polypeptide level. It will be appreciated that for silencing the expression is at the mRNA level alone (silencing mechanisms of HXK are described further hereinbelow).

As used herein, the phrase “exogenous polynucleotide” refers to a heterologous nucleic acid sequence which may not be naturally expressed within the plant or which overexpression in the plant is desired. The exogenous polynucleotide may be introduced into the plant in a stable or transient manner, so as to produce a ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecule and/or a polypeptide molecule. It should be noted that the exogenous polynucleotide may comprise a nucleic acid sequence which is identical or partially homologous to an endogenous nucleic acid sequence of the plant.

The term “endogenous” as used herein refers to any polynucleotide or polypeptide which is present and/or naturally expressed within a plant or a cell thereof.

According to the invention, the exogenous polynucleotide of the invention comprises a nucleic acid sequence encoding a polypeptide having an amino acid sequence of a hexokinase.

According to a specific embodiment the amino acid sequence of the HXK polypeptide (encoded from the exogenous polynucleotide) is at least about, 30%, 40% or 50%, or at least about 55%, at least about 60%, at least about 65%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at least about 80%, at least about 81%, at least about 82%, at least about 83%, at least about 84%, at least about 85%, at least about 86%, at least about 87%, at least about 88%, at least about 89%, at least about 90%, at least about 91%, at least about 92%, at least about 93%, at least about 94%, at least about 95%, at least about 96%, at least about 97%, at least about 98%, at least about 99%, or more say 100% homologous to the amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, 64, 66, 68, 70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92 and 94, as long as its hexokinase activity is maintained as described above.

Homology (e.g., percent homology, identity+similarity) can be determined using any homology comparison software, including for example, the BlastP or TBLASTN software of the National Center of Biotechnology Information (NCBI) such as by using default parameters, when starting from a polypeptide sequence; or the tBLASTX algorithm (available via the NCBI) such as by using default parameters, which compares the six-frame conceptual translation products of a nucleotide query sequence (both strands) against a protein sequence database.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the term “homology” or “homologous” refers to identity of two or more nucleic acid sequences; or identity of two or more amino acid sequences.

Homologous sequences include both orthologous and paralogous sequences. The term “paralogous” relates to gene-duplications within the genome of a species leading to paralogous genes. The term “orthologous” relates to homologous genes in different organisms due to ancestral relationship.

One option to identify orthologues in monocot plant species is by performing a reciprocal blast search. This may be done by a first blast involving blasting the sequence-of-interest against any sequence database, such as the publicly available NCBI database which may be found at: Hypertext Transfer Protocol://World Wide Web (dot) ncbi (dot) nlm (dot) nih (dot) gov. If orthologues in rice were sought, the sequence-of-interest would be blasted against, for example, the 28,469 full-length cDNA clones from Oryza sativa Nipponbare available at NCBI. The blast results may be filtered. The full-length sequences of either the filtered results or the non-filtered results are then blasted back (second blast) against the sequences of the organism from which the sequence-of-interest is derived. The results of the first and second blasts are then compared. An orthologue is identified when the sequence resulting in the highest score (best hit) in the first blast identifies in the second blast the query sequence (the original sequence-of-interest) as the best hit. Using the same rational a paralogue (homolog to a gene in the same organism) is found. In case of large sequence families, the ClustalW program may be used [Hypertext Transfer Protocol://World Wide Web (dot) ebi (dot) ac (dot) uk/Tools/clustalw2/index (dot) html], followed by a neighbor-joining tree (Hypertext Transfer Protocol://en (dot) wikipedia (dot) org/wiki/Neighbor-joining) which helps visualizing the clustering.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the exogenous polynucleotide of the invention encodes a polypeptide having an amino acid sequence at least about 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70% or at least about 80%, at least about 81%, at least about 82%, at least about 83%, at least about 84%, at least about 85%, at least about 86%, at least about 87%, at least about 88%, at least about 89%, at least about 90%, at least about 91%, at least about 92%, at least about 93%, at least about 94%, at least about 95%, at least about 96%, at least about 97%, at least about 98%, at least about 99%, or more say 100% identical to the amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, 64, 66, 68, 70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92 and 94 as long as the hexokinase activity of the protein (as described above) is maintained.

As used herein the term “polynucleotide” refers to a single or double stranded nucleic acid sequence which is isolated and provided in the form of an RNA sequence, a complementary polynucleotide sequence (cDNA), a genomic polynucleotide sequence and/or a composite polynucleotide sequences (e.g., a combination of the above).

The term “isolated” refers to at least partially separated from the natural environment e.g., from a plant cell.

As used herein the phrase “complementary polynucleotide sequence” refers to a sequence, which results from reverse transcription of messenger RNA using a reverse transcriptase or any other RNA dependent DNA polymerase. Such a sequence can be subsequently amplified in vivo or in vitro using a DNA dependent DNA polymerase.

As used herein the phrase “genomic polynucleotide sequence” refers to a sequence derived (isolated) from a chromosome and thus it represents a contiguous portion of a chromosome.

As used herein the phrase “composite polynucleotide sequence” refers to a sequence, which is at least partially complementary and at least partially genomic. A composite sequence can include some exonal sequences required to encode the polypeptide of the present invention, as well as some intronic sequences interposing therebetween. The intronic sequences can be of any source, including of other genes, and typically will include conserved splicing signal sequences. Such intronic sequences may further include cis acting expression regulatory elements.

Nucleic acid sequences encoding the HXK polypeptides of the present invention may be optimized for expression. Examples of such sequence modifications include, but are not limited to, an altered G/C content to more closely approach that typically found in the plant species of interest, and the removal of codons atypically found in the plant species commonly referred to as codon optimization.

The phrase “codon optimization” refers to the selection of appropriate DNA nucleotides for use within a structural gene or fragment thereof that approaches codon usage within the plant of interest. Therefore, an optimized gene or nucleic acid sequence refers to a gene in which the nucleotide sequence of a native or naturally occurring gene has been modified in order to utilize statistically-preferred or statistically-favored codons within the plant. The nucleotide sequence typically is examined at the DNA level and the coding region optimized for expression in the plant species determined using any suitable procedure, for example as described in Sardana et al. (1996, Plant Cell Reports 15:677-681). In this method, the standard deviation of codon usage, a measure of codon usage bias, may be calculated by first finding the squared proportional deviation of usage of each codon of the native gene relative to that of highly expressed plant genes, followed by a calculation of the average squared deviation. The formula used is: 1 SDCU=n=1 N [(Xn−Yn)/Yn]2/N, where Xn refers to the frequency of usage of codon n in highly expressed plant genes, where Yn to the frequency of usage of codon n in the gene of interest and N refers to the total number of codons in the gene of interest. A Table of codon usage from highly expressed genes of dicotyledonous plants is compiled using the data of Murray et al. (1989, Nuc Acids Res. 17:477-498).

One method of optimizing the nucleic acid sequence in accordance with the preferred codon usage for a particular plant cell type is based on the direct use, without performing any extra statistical calculations, of codon optimization Tables such as those provided on-line at the Codon Usage Database through the NIAS (National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences) DNA bank in Japan (Hypertext Transfer Protocol://World Wide Web (dot) kazusa (dot) or (dot) jp/codon/). The Codon Usage Database contains codon usage tables for a number of different species, with each codon usage Table having been statistically determined based on the data present in Genbank.

By using the above Tables to determine the most preferred or most favored codons for each amino acid in a particular species (for example, rice), a naturally-occurring nucleotide sequence encoding a protein of interest can be codon optimized for that particular plant species. This is effected by replacing codons that may have a low statistical incidence in the particular species genome with corresponding codons, in regard to an amino acid, that are statistically more favored. However, one or more less-favored codons may be selected to delete existing restriction sites, to create new ones at potentially useful junctions (5′ and 3′ ends to add signal peptide or termination cassettes, internal sites that might be used to cut and splice segments together to produce a correct full-length sequence), or to eliminate nucleotide sequences that may negatively effect mRNA stability or expression.

The naturally-occurring encoding nucleotide sequence may already, in advance of any modification, contain a number of codons that correspond to a statistically-favored codon in a particular plant species. Therefore, codon optimization of the native nucleotide sequence may comprise determining which codons, within the native nucleotide sequence, are not statistically-favored with regards to a particular plant, and modifying these codons in accordance with a codon usage table of the particular plant to produce a codon optimized derivative. A modified nucleotide sequence may be fully or partially optimized for plant codon usage provided that the protein encoded by the modified nucleotide sequence is produced at a level higher than the protein encoded by the corresponding naturally occurring or native gene. Construction of synthetic genes by altering the codon usage is described in for example PCT Patent Application 93/07278.

The term “plant” as used herein encompasses whole plants, ancestors and progeny of the plants and plant parts (those which comprise stomata but not necessarily), including seeds, shoots, stems, roots (including tubers), and plant cells, tissues and organs. The plant may be in any form including suspension cultures, embryos, meristematic regions, callus tissue, leaves, gametophytes, sporophytes, pollen, and microspores.

According to some embodiments of the invention the plant is a dicotyledonous plant.

According to some embodiments of the invention the plant is a monocotyledonous plant.

Plants that are particularly useful in the methods of the invention include all plants which belong to the superfamily Viridiplantae, in particular monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plants including a fodder or forage legume, ornamental plant, food crop, tree, or shrub selected from the list comprising Acacia spp., Acer spp., Actinidia spp., Aesculus spp., Agathis australis, Albizia amara, Alsophila tricolor, Andropogon spp., Arachis spp, Areca catechu, Astelia fragrans, Astragalus cicer, Baikiaea plurijuga, Betula spp., Brassica spp., Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Burkea africana, Butea frondosa, Cadaba farinosa, Calliandra spp, Camellia sinensis, Canna indica, Capsicum spp., Cassia spp., Centroema pubescens, Chacoomeles spp., Cinnamomum cassia, Coffea arabica, Colophospermum mopane, Coronillia varia, Cotoneaster serotina, Crataegus spp., Cucumis spp., Cupressus spp., Cyathea dealbata, Cydonia oblonga, Cryptomeria japonica, Cymbopogon spp., Cynthea dealbata, Cydonia oblonga, Dalbergia monetaria, Davallia divaricata, Desmodium spp., Dicksonia squarosa, Dibeteropogon amplectens, Dioclea spp, Dolichos spp., Dorycnium rectum, Echinochloa pyramidalis, Ehraffia spp., Eleusine coracana, Eragrestis spp., Erythrina spp., Eucalypfus spp., Euclea schimperi, Eulalia vi/losa, Pagopyrum spp., Feijoa sellowlana, Fragaria spp., Flemingia spp, Freycinetia banksli, Geranium thunbergii, GinAgo biloba, Glycine javanica, Gliricidia spp, Gossypium hirsutum, Grevillea spp., Guibourtia coleosperma, Hedysarum spp., Hemaffhia altissima, Heteropogon contoffus, Hordeum vulgare, Hyparrhenia rufa, Hypericum erectum, Hypeffhelia dissolute, Indigo incamata, Iris spp., Leptarrhena pyrolifolia, Lespediza spp., Lettuca spp., Leucaena leucocephala, Loudetia simplex, Lotonus bainesli, Lotus spp., Macrotyloma axillare, Malus spp., Manihot esculenta, Medicago saliva, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, Musa sapientum, Nicotianum spp., Onobrychis spp., Ornithopus spp., Oryza spp., Peltophorum africanum, Pennisetum spp., Persea gratissima, Petunia spp., Phaseolus spp., Phoenix canariensis, Phormium cookianum, Photinia spp., Picea glauca, Pinus spp., Pisum sativam, Podocarpus totara, Pogonarthria fleckii, Pogonaffhria squarrosa, Populus spp., Prosopis cineraria, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Pterolobium stellatum, Pyrus communis, Quercus spp., Rhaphiolepsis umbellata, Rhopalostylis sapida, Rhus natalensis, Ribes grossularia, Ribes spp., Robinia pseudoacacia, Rosa spp., Rubus spp., Salix spp., Schyzachyrium sanguineum, Sciadopitys vefficillata, Sequoia sempervirens, Sequoiadendron giganteum, Sorghum bicolor, Spinacia spp., Sporobolus fimbriatus, Stiburus alopecuroides, Stylosanthos humilis, Tadehagi spp, Taxodium distichum, Themeda triandra, Trifolium spp., Triticum spp., Tsuga heterophylla, Vaccinium spp., Vicia spp., Vitis vinifera, Watsonia pyramidata, Zantedeschia aethiopica, Zea mays, amaranth, artichoke, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, canola, carrot, cauliflower, celery, collard greens, flax, kale, lentil, oilseed rape, okra, onion, potato, rice, soybean, straw, sugar beet, sugar cane, sunflower, tomato, squash tea, maize, wheat, barley, rye, oat, peanut, pea, lentil and alfalfa, cotton, rapeseed, canola, pepper, sunflower, tobacco, eggplant, eucalyptus, a tree, an ornamental plant, a perennial grass and a forage crop. Alternatively algae and other non-Viridiplantae can be used for the methods of the present invention.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the plant used by the method of the invention is a crop plant such as rice, maize, wheat, barley, peanut, potato, sesame, olive tree, palm oil, banana, soybean, sunflower, canola, sugarcane, alfalfa, millet, leguminosae (bean, pea), flax, lupinus, rapeseed, tobacco, poplar and cotton.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the plant is a tomato or a banana.

According to some embodiments of the invention, expressing the exogenous polynucleotide of the invention within the plant is effected by introducing into a cell of the plant (e.g., transforming one or more cells of the plant) an exogenous polynucleotide encoding the HXK under a cis-acting regulatory element for driving expression of the HXK in a guard-cell specific manner, followed by generating a mature plant from the transformed cells and cultivating the mature plant under conditions suitable for expressing the exogenous polynucleotide within the mature plant.

Thus, there is provided a plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a hexokinase under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element and methods which make use of same.

There is also provided a method of decreasing plant stomata conductance, the method comprising introducing into a cell of a plant the above-described nucleic acid construct, thereby decreasing the stomata conductance of the plant.

Alternatively or additionally there is provided a method of increasing water use efficiency of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the above-described nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing water use efficiency of the plant.

Alternatively or additionally there is provided a method of increasing tolerance of a plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the above-described nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing tolerance of the plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress.

Alternatively or additionally there is provided a method of increasing biotic stress tolerance of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the above-described nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing biotic stress tolerance of the plant.

Alternatively or additionally there is provided a method of increasing biomass, vigor or yield of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct, thereby increasing the biomass, vigor or yield of the plant

According to some embodiments of the invention, the transformation is effected by introducing to the plant cell a nucleic acid construct which includes the exogenous polynucleotide of some embodiments of the invention encoding the HXK (as described above) and a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element. Further details of suitable transformation approaches are provided hereinbelow.

As used herein “guard-cell specific cis-acting regulatory element” refers to the ability of a transcriptional element to drive expression of the nucleic acid sequence under its regulation (e.g., HXK) only in guard cells, leaving the rest of the tissues in the plant unmodified by transgene expression (e.g., more than 90% of the mRNA is expressed in the tissue of interest, as detected by RT-PCR). Tissue-specific cis-acting regulatory elements may be induced by endogenous or exogenous factors, so they can be classified as inducible promoters as well. In other cases they are constitutively expressed.

A coding nucleic acid sequence (e.g., HXK) is “operably linked” to a regulatory sequence (e.g., guard-cell specific promoter) if the regulatory sequence is capable of exerting a regulatory effect on the coding sequence linked thereto.

According to some embodiments of the invention the cis-acting regulatory element is a promoter.

As used herein, the term “promoter” refers to a region of DNA which lies upstream of the transcriptional initiation site of a gene to which RNA polymerase binds to initiate transcription of RNA. The promoter controls where (e.g., which portion of a plant) and/or when (e.g., at which stage or condition in the lifetime of an organism) the gene is expressed.

Examples of guard-cell specific promoters include, but are not limited to the promoters listed in Table 2 below and the KST1 promoter used in the Examples section (SEQ ID NO: 108).

TABLE 2 Verification Promoter Species Accession n. method Ref. Comments 1 AtMYB61 Arabidopsis AT1G09540 GFP (Liang et al., 2005) Specific promoter thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 95) expression in GC 2 At1g22690- Arabidopsis At1g22690 GFP based (Yang et al., 2008) Specific promoter thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 96) calcium expression in GC (pGC1) FRET reporter/GUS 3 AtMYB60 Arabidopsis At1g08810 GUS, GFP (Cominelli et al., 2005; Specific promoter thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 97) Galbiati et al., 2008; expression in GC Cominelli et al., 2011) 4 R2R3 MYB60 Vitis ACF21938 GUS (Galbiati et al., 2011) Specific transcription vinifera (SEQ ID NO: 98) expression in GC factor promoter L. 5 HIC (High Arabidopsis AT2G46720 GUS (Gray et al., 2000) Specific carbon dioxide) thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 99) expression in GC promoter 6 CYTOCHROME Arabidopsis At4g00360 GFP (Francia et al.,2008; Specific P450 86A2 thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 100) Galbiati et al., 2008) expression in GC (CYP86A2) mono- oxygenase promoter (pCYP) 7 ADP-glucose Solanum X75017 GUS (Muller-Rober et al., 0.3 Kb 5′proximal pyrophosphory- tuberosum (Promoter seq.) 1994) promoter - lase (AGPase) (SEQ ID NO: 101) exclusive GC Promoter expression 8 KAT1 promoter Arabidopsis AT5G46240 GUS (Nakamura et al., 1995) Specific thaliana (gene), U25088 expression in GC. (promoter + However, was gene seq.) detected also in (SEQ ID NO: 102) vascular tissue of roots 9 Myrosinase- Arabidopsis At5g26000 GUS, GFP (Husebye et al., 2002) Specific Thioglucoside thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 103) expression in GC. glucohydrolase Distinct 1 (TGG1) expression in promoter phloem 10 rha1 promoter Arabidopsis AT5G45130 GUS (Terryn et al., 1993) Mainly expressed thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 104) (non-specific) in GC 11 AtCHX20 Arabidopsis AT3G53720 GUS (Padmanaban et al., Specific promoter thaliana (SEQ ID NO: 105) 2007) expression in GC GC—guard cell. GFP—green fluorescence protein. GUS—β-glucoronidase reporter gene.

The nucleic acid construct of some embodiments of the invention can further include an appropriate selectable marker and/or an origin of replication. According to some embodiments of the invention, the nucleic acid construct utilized is a shuttle vector, which can propagate both in E. coli (wherein the construct comprises an appropriate selectable marker and origin of replication) and be compatible with propagation in cells. The construct according to the present invention can be, for example, a plasmid, a bacmid, a phagemid, a cosmid, a phage, a virus or an artificial chromosome.

The nucleic acid construct of some embodiments of the invention can be utilized to stably or transiently transform plant cells. In stable transformation, the exogenous polynucleotide is integrated into the plant genome and as such it represents a stable and inherited trait. In transient transformation, the exogenous polynucleotide is expressed by the cell transformed but it is not integrated into the genome and as such it represents a transient trait.

There are various methods of introducing foreign genes into both monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plants (Potrykus, I., Annu. Rev. Plant. Physiol., Plant. Mol. Biol. (1991) 42:205-225; Shimamoto et al., Nature (1989) 338:274-276).

The principle methods of causing stable integration of exogenous DNA into plant genomic DNA include two main approaches:

(i) Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer: Klee et al. (1987) Annu. Rev. Plant Physiol. 38:467-486; Klee and Rogers in Cell Culture and Somatic Cell Genetics of Plants, Vol. 6, Molecular Biology of Plant Nuclear Genes, eds. Schell, J., and Vasil, L. K., Academic Publishers, San Diego, Calif. (1989) p. 2-25; Gatenby, in Plant Biotechnology, eds. Kung, S, and Arntzen, C. J., Butterworth Publishers, Boston, Mass. (1989) p. 93-112.

(ii) Direct DNA uptake: Paszkowski et al., in Cell Culture and Somatic Cell Genetics of Plants, Vol. 6, Molecular Biology of Plant Nuclear Genes eds. Schell, J., and Vasil, L. K., Academic Publishers, San Diego, Calif. (1989) p. 52-68; including methods for direct uptake of DNA into protoplasts, Toriyama, K. et al. (1988) Bio/Technology 6:1072-1074. DNA uptake induced by brief electric shock of plant cells: Zhang et al. Plant Cell Rep. (1988) 7:379-384. Fromm et al. Nature (1986) 319:791-793. DNA injection into plant cells or tissues by particle bombardment, Klein et al. Bio/Technology (1988) 6:559-563; McCabe et al. Bio/Technology (1988) 6:923-926; Sanford, Physiol. Plant. (1990) 79:206-209; by the use of micropipette systems: Neuhaus et al., Theor. Appl. Genet. (1987) 75:30-36; Neuhaus and Spangenberg, Physiol. Plant. (1990) 79:213-217; glass fibers or silicon carbide whisker transformation of cell cultures, embryos or callus tissue, U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,765 or by the direct incubation of DNA with germinating pollen, DeWet et al. in Experimental Manipulation of Ovule Tissue, eds. Chapman, G. P. and Mantell, S. H. and Daniels, W. Longman, London, (1985) p. 197-209; and Ohta, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1986) 83:715-719.

The Agrobacterium system includes the use of plasmid vectors that contain defined DNA segments that integrate into the plant genomic DNA. Methods of inoculation of the plant tissue vary depending upon the plant species and the Agrobacterium delivery system. A widely used approach is the leaf disc procedure which can be performed with any tissue explant that provides a good source for initiation of whole plant differentiation. See, e.g., Horsch et al. in Plant Molecular Biology Manual A5, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht (1988) p. 1-9. A supplementary approach employs the Agrobacterium delivery system in combination with vacuum infiltration. The Agrobacterium system is especially viable in the creation of transgenic dicotyledonous plants.

There are various methods of direct DNA transfer into plant cells. In electroporation, the protoplasts are briefly exposed to a strong electric field. In microinjection, the DNA is mechanically injected directly into the cells using very small micropipettes. In microparticle bombardment, the DNA is adsorbed on microprojectiles such as magnesium sulfate crystals or tungsten particles, and the microprojectiles are physically accelerated into cells or plant tissues.

Following stable transformation plant propagation is exercised. The most common method of plant propagation is by seed. Regeneration by seed propagation, however, has the deficiency that due to heterozygosity there is a lack of uniformity in the crop, since seeds are produced by plants according to the genetic variances governed by Mendelian rules. Basically, each seed is genetically different and each will grow with its own specific traits. Therefore, it is preferred that the transformed plant be produced such that the regenerated plant has the identical traits and characteristics of the parent transgenic plant. Therefore, it is preferred that the transformed plant be regenerated by micropropagation which provides a rapid, consistent reproduction of the transformed plants.

Micropropagation is a process of growing new generation plants from a single piece of tissue that has been excised from a selected parent plant or cultivar. This process permits the mass reproduction of plants having the preferred tissue expressing the fusion protein. The new generation plants which are produced are genetically identical to, and have all of the characteristics of, the original plant. Micropropagation allows mass production of quality plant material in a short period of time and offers a rapid multiplication of selected cultivars in the preservation of the characteristics of the original transgenic or transformed plant. The advantages of cloning plants are the speed of plant multiplication and the quality and uniformity of plants produced.

Micropropagation is a multi-stage procedure that requires alteration of culture medium or growth conditions between stages. Thus, the micropropagation process involves four basic stages: Stage one, initial tissue culturing; stage two, tissue culture multiplication; stage three, differentiation and plant formation; and stage four, greenhouse culturing and hardening. During stage one, initial tissue culturing, the tissue culture is established and certified contaminant-free. During stage two, the initial tissue culture is multiplied until a sufficient number of tissue samples are produced to meet production goals. During stage three, the tissue samples grown in stage two are divided and grown into individual plantlets. At stage four, the transformed plantlets are transferred to a greenhouse for hardening where the plants' tolerance to light is gradually increased so that it can be grown in the natural environment.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the transgenic plants are generated by transient transformation of leaf cells, meristematic cells or the whole plant.

Transient transformation can be effected by any of the direct DNA transfer methods described above or by viral infection using modified plant viruses.

Viruses that have been shown to be useful for the transformation of plant hosts include CaMV, Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), brome mosaic virus (BMV) and Bean Common Mosaic Virus (BV or BCMV). Transformation of plants using plant viruses is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,855,237 (bean golden mosaic virus; BGV), EP-A 67,553 (TMV), Japanese Published Application No. 63-14693 (TMV), EPA 194,809 (BV), EPA 278,667 (BV); and Gluzman, Y. et al., Communications in Molecular Biology: Viral Vectors, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, pp. 172-189 (1988). Pseudovirus particles for use in expressing foreign DNA in many hosts, including plants are described in WO 87/06261.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the virus used for transient transformations is avirulent and thus is incapable of causing severe symptoms such as reduced growth rate, mosaic, ring spots, leaf roll, yellowing, streaking, pox formation, tumor formation and pitting. A suitable avirulent virus may be a naturally occurring avirulent virus or an artificially attenuated virus. Virus attenuation may be effected by using methods well known in the art including, but not limited to, sub-lethal heating, chemical treatment or by directed mutagenesis techniques such as described, for example, by Kurihara and Watanabe (Molecular Plant Pathology 4:259-269, 2003), Gal-on et al. (1992), Atreya et al. (1992) and Huet et al. (1994).

Suitable virus strains can be obtained from available sources such as, for example, the American Type culture Collection (ATCC) or by isolation from infected plants. Isolation of viruses from infected plant tissues can be effected by techniques well known in the art such as described, for example by Foster and Tatlor, Eds. “Plant Virology Protocols: From Virus Isolation to Transgenic Resistance (Methods in Molecular Biology (Humana Pr), Vol 81)”, Humana Press, 1998. Briefly, tissues of an infected plant believed to contain a high concentration of a suitable virus, preferably young leaves and flower petals, are ground in a buffer solution (e.g., phosphate buffer solution) to produce a virus infected sap which can be used in subsequent inoculations.

Construction of plant RNA viruses for the introduction and expression of non-viral exogenous polynucleotide sequences in plants is demonstrated by the above references as well as by Dawson, W. O. et al., Virology (1989) 172:285-292; Takamatsu et al. EMBO J. (1987) 6:307-311; French et al. Science (1986) 231:1294-1297; Takamatsu et al. FEBS Letters (1990) 269:73-76; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,931.

When the virus is a DNA virus, suitable modifications can be made to the virus itself. Alternatively, the virus can first be cloned into a bacterial plasmid for ease of constructing the desired viral vector with the foreign DNA. The virus can then be excised from the plasmid. If the virus is a DNA virus, a bacterial origin of replication can be attached to the viral DNA, which is then replicated by the bacteria. Transcription and translation of this DNA will produce the coat protein which will encapsidate the viral DNA. If the virus is an RNA virus, the virus is generally cloned as a cDNA and inserted into a plasmid. The plasmid is then used to make all of the constructions. The RNA virus is then produced by transcribing the viral sequence of the plasmid and translation of the viral genes to produce the coat protein(s) which encapsidate the viral RNA.

In one embodiment, a plant viral polynucleotide is provided in which the native coat protein coding sequence has been deleted from a viral polynucleotide, a non-native plant viral coat protein coding sequence and a non-native promoter, preferably the subgenomic promoter of the non-native coat protein coding sequence, capable of expression in the plant host, packaging of the recombinant plant viral polynucleotide, and ensuring a systemic infection of the host by the recombinant plant viral polynucleotide, has been inserted. Alternatively, the coat protein gene may be inactivated by insertion of the non-native polynucleotide sequence within it, such that a protein is produced. The recombinant plant viral polynucleotide may contain one or more additional non-native subgenomic promoters. Each non-native subgenomic promoter is capable of transcribing or expressing adjacent genes or polynucleotide sequences in the plant host and incapable of recombination with each other and with native subgenomic promoters. Non-native (foreign) polynucleotide sequences may be inserted adjacent the native plant viral subgenomic promoter or the native and a non-native plant viral subgenomic promoters if more than one polynucleotide sequence is included. The non-native polynucleotide sequences are transcribed or expressed in the host plant under control of the subgenomic promoter to produce the desired products.

In a second embodiment, a recombinant plant viral polynucleotide is provided as in the first embodiment except that the native coat protein coding sequence is placed adjacent one of the non-native coat protein subgenomic promoters instead of a non-native coat protein coding sequence.

In a third embodiment, a recombinant plant viral polynucleotide is provided in which the native coat protein gene is adjacent its subgenomic promoter and one or more non-native subgenomic promoters have been inserted into the viral polynucleotide. The inserted non-native subgenomic promoters are capable of transcribing or expressing adjacent genes in a plant host and are incapable of recombination with each other and with native subgenomic promoters. Non-native polynucleotide sequences may be inserted adjacent the non-native subgenomic plant viral promoters such that the sequences are transcribed or expressed in the host plant under control of the subgenomic promoters to produce the desired product.

In a fourth embodiment, a recombinant plant viral polynucleotide is provided as in the third embodiment except that the native coat protein coding sequence is replaced by a non-native coat protein coding sequence.

The viral vectors are encapsidated by the coat proteins encoded by the recombinant plant viral polynucleotide to produce a recombinant plant virus. The recombinant plant viral polynucleotide or recombinant plant virus is used to infect appropriate host plants. The recombinant plant viral polynucleotide is capable of replication in the host, systemic spread in the host, and transcription or expression of foreign gene(s) (exogenous polynucleotide) in the host to produce the desired protein.

Techniques for inoculation of viruses to plants may be found in Foster and Taylor, eds. “Plant Virology Protocols: From Virus Isolation to Transgenic Resistance (Methods in Molecular Biology (Humana Pr), Vol 81)”, Humana Press, 1998; Maramorosh and Koprowski, eds. “Methods in Virology” 7 vols, Academic Press, New York 1967-1984; Hill, S. A. “Methods in Plant Virology”, Blackwell, Oxford, 1984; Walkey, D. G. A. “Applied Plant Virology”, Wiley, New York, 1985; and Kado and Agrawa, eds. “Principles and Techniques in Plant Virology”, Van Nostrand-Reinhold, New York.

In addition to the above, the polynucleotide of the present invention can also be introduced into a chloroplast genome thereby enabling chloroplast expression.

A technique for introducing exogenous polynucleotide sequences to the genome of the chloroplasts is known. This technique involves the following procedures. First, plant cells are chemically treated so as to reduce the number of chloroplasts per cell to about one. Then, the exogenous polynucleotide is introduced via particle bombardment into the cells with the aim of introducing at least one exogenous polynucleotide molecule into the chloroplasts. The exogenous polynucleotides selected such that it is integratable into the chloroplast's genome via homologous recombination which is readily effected by enzymes inherent to the chloroplast. To this end, the exogenous polynucleotide includes, in addition to a gene of interest, at least one polynucleotide stretch which is derived from the chloroplast's genome. In addition, the exogenous polynucleotide includes a selectable marker, which serves by sequential selection procedures to ascertain that all or substantially all of the copies of the chloroplast genomes following such selection will include the exogenous polynucleotide. Further details relating to this technique are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,945,050; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,507 which are incorporated herein by reference. A polypeptide can thus be produced by the protein expression system of the chloroplast and become integrated into the chloroplast's inner membrane.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the method further comprising growing the plant expressing the exogenous polynucleotide under the biotic or abiotic stress (e.g., drought, water deprivation or temperature stress). Thus, the invention encompasses (transgenic) plants, parts thereof or plant cells, exogenously expressing the polynucleotide(s) or the nucleic acid constructs of the invention.

Once expressed within the plant cell or the entire plant, the level of the polypeptide encoded by the exogenous polynucleotide can be determined by methods well known in the art such as, activity assays, Western blots using antibodies capable of specifically binding the polypeptide, Enzyme-Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay (ELISA), radio-immuno-assays (RIA), immunohistochemistry, immunocytochemistry, immunofluorescence and the like.

Methods of determining the level in the plant of the RNA transcribed from the exogenous polynucleotide are well known in the art and include, for example, Northern blot analysis, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis (including quantitative, semi-quantitative or real-time RT-PCR) and RNA-in situ hybridization.

The effect of the expressed HXK on plant stomata conductance (e.g., manifested by aperture), water use efficiency, water use efficiency and/or photosynthesis can be qualified using methods which are well known in the art. Stomata functionality assays are described in length in the Examples section which follows.

The effect of the exogenous polynucleotide encoding the HXK on abiotic stress tolerance can be determined using known methods such as detailed below and in the Examples section which follows.

Abiotic stress tolerance—Transformed (i.e., expressing the HXK) and non-transformed (wild type) plants are exposed to biotic or an abiotic stress condition, such as water deprivation or suboptimal temperature (low temperature, high temperature).

Cold stress tolerance—To analyze cold stress, mature (25 day old) plants are transferred to 4° C. chambers for 1 or 2 weeks, with constitutive light. Later on plants are moved back to greenhouse. Two weeks later damages from chilling period, resulting in growth retardation and other phenotypes, are compared between both control and transgenic plants, by measuring plant weight (wet and dry), and by comparing growth rates measured as time to flowering, plant size, yield, and the like.

Heat stress tolerance—Heat stress tolerance is achieved by exposing the plants to temperatures above 34° C. for a certain period. Plant tolerance is examined after transferring the plants back to 22° C. for recovery and evaluation after 5 days relative to internal controls (non-transgenic plants) or plants not exposed to neither cold or heat stress.

Water use efficiency—can be determined as the biomass produced per unit transpiration. To analyze WUE, leaf relative water content can be measured in control and transgenic plants. Fresh weight (FW) is immediately recorded; then leaves are soaked for 8 hours in distilled water at room temperature in the dark, and the turgid weight (TW) is recorded. Total dry weight (DW) is recorded after drying the leaves at 60° C. to a constant weight. Relative water content (RWC) is calculated.

Salinity tolerance assay—Transgenic plants with tolerance to high salt concentrations are expected to exhibit better germination, seedling vigor or growth in high salt. Salt stress can be effected in many ways such as, for example, by irrigating the plants with a hyperosmotic solution, by cultivating the plants hydroponically in a hyperosmotic growth solution (e.g., Hoagland solution), or by culturing the plants in a hyperosmotic growth medium [e.g., 50% Murashige-Skoog medium (MS medium)]. Since different plants vary considerably in their tolerance to salinity, the salt concentration in the irrigation water, growth solution, or growth medium can be adjusted according to the specific characteristics of the specific plant cultivar or variety, so as to inflict a mild or moderate effect on the physiology and/or morphology of the plants (for guidelines as to appropriate concentration see, Bernstein and Kafkafi, Root Growth Under Salinity Stress In: Plant Roots, The Hidden Half 3rd ed. Waisel Y, Eshel A and Kafkafi U. (editors) Marcel Dekker Inc., New York, 2002, and reference therein).

For example, a salinity tolerance test can be performed by irrigating plants at different developmental stages with increasing concentrations of sodium chloride (for example 50 mM, 100 mM, 200 mM, 400 mM NaCl) applied from the bottom and from above to ensure even dispersal of salt. Following exposure to the stress condition the plants are frequently monitored until substantial physiological and/or morphological effects appear in wild type plants. Thus, the external phenotypic appearance, degree of wilting and overall success to reach maturity and yield progeny are compared between control and transgenic plants.

Quantitative parameters of tolerance measured include, but are not limited to, the average wet and dry weight, growth rate, leaf size, leaf coverage (overall leaf area), the weight of the seeds yielded, the average seed size and the number of seeds produced per plant. Transformed plants not exhibiting substantial physiological and/or morphological effects, or exhibiting higher biomass than wild-type plants, are identified as abiotic stress tolerant plants.

Osmotic tolerance test—Osmotic stress assays (including sodium chloride and mannitol assays) are conducted to determine if an osmotic stress phenotype was sodium chloride-specific or if it was a general osmotic stress related phenotype. Plants which are tolerant to osmotic stress may have more tolerance to drought and/or freezing. For salt and osmotic stress germination experiments, the medium is supplemented for example with 50 mM, 100 mM, 200 mM NaCl or 100 mM, 200 mM NaCl, 400 mM mannitol.

The effect of the transgene on plant's vigor, growth rate, biomass, yield and/or oil content can be determined using known methods.

Plant vigor—The plant vigor can be calculated by the increase in growth parameters such as leaf area, fiber length, rosette diameter, plant fresh weight and the like per time.

Growth rate—The growth rate can be measured using digital analysis of growing plants. For example, images of plants growing in greenhouse on plot basis can be captured every 3 days and the rosette area can be calculated by digital analysis. Rosette area growth is calculated using the difference of rosette area between days of sampling divided by the difference in days between samples.

As mentioned, the present teachings are also directed at downregulating HXK activity or expression in a guard cell specific manner. This is effected to increase plant dehydration where needed. For example when there is a need to accelerate defoliation prior or after harvesting such as in cotton and other crops, or for dehydration of leaves and stems for straw for instance.

Downregulation (gene silencing) of the transcription or translation product of an endogenous HXK in a guard-cell specific manner can be achieved by co-suppression, antisense suppression, RNA interference and ribozyme molecules under the above mentioned cis-acting regulatory element active specifically in a guard cell.

Thus, there is provided a plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a nucleic acid agent for silencing expression of a hexokinase, wherein expression of said nucleic acid agent is under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element (as described above).

Co-suppression (sense suppression)—Inhibition of the endogenous gene can be achieved by co-suppression, using an RNA molecule (or an expression vector encoding same) which is in the sense orientation with respect to the transcription direction of the endogenous gene. The polynucleotide used for co-suppression may correspond to all or part of the sequence encoding the endogenous polypeptide and/or to all or part of the 5′ and/or 3′ untranslated region of the endogenous transcript; it may also be an unpolyadenylated RNA; an RNA which lacks a 5′ cap structure; or an RNA which contains an unsplicable intron. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide used for co-suppression is designed to eliminate the start codon of the endogenous polynucleotide so that no protein product will be translated. Methods of co-suppression using a full-length cDNA sequence as well as a partial cDNA sequence are known in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,020).

According to some embodiments of the invention, downregulation of the endogenous gene is performed using an amplicon expression vector which comprises a plant virus-derived sequence that contains all or part of the target gene but generally not all of the genes of the native virus. The viral sequences present in the transcription product of the expression vector allow the transcription product to direct its own replication. The transcripts produced by the amplicon may be either sense or antisense relative to the target sequence [see for example, Angell and Baulcombe, (1997) EMBO J. 16:3675-3684; Angell and Baulcombe, (1999) Plant J. 20:357-362, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,646,805, each of which is herein incorporated by reference].

Antisense suppression—Antisense suppression can be performed using an antisense polynucleotide or an expression vector which is designed to express an RNA molecule complementary to all or part of the messenger RNA (mRNA) encoding the endogenous polypeptide and/or to all or part of the 5′ and/or 3′ untranslated region of the endogenous gene. Over expression of the antisense RNA molecule can result in reduced expression of the native (endogenous) gene. The antisense polynucleotide may be fully complementary to the target sequence (i.e., 100% identical to the complement of the target sequence) or partially complementary to the target sequence (i.e., less than 100% identical, e.g., less than 90%, less than 80% identical to the complement of the target sequence). Antisense suppression may be used to inhibit the expression of multiple proteins in the same plant (see e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,942,657). In addition, portions of the antisense nucleotides may be used to disrupt the expression of the target gene. Generally, sequences of at least about 50 nucleotides, at least about 100 nucleotides, at least about 200 nucleotides, at least about 300, at least about 400, at least about 450, at least about 500, at least about 550, or greater may be used. Methods of using antisense suppression to inhibit the expression of endogenous genes in plants are described, for example, in Liu, et al., (2002) Plant Physiol. 129:1732-1743 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,759,829 and 5,942,657, each of which is herein incorporated by reference. Efficiency of antisense suppression may be increased by including a poly-dT region in the expression cassette at a position 3′ to the antisense sequence and 5′ of the polyadenylation signal [See, U.S. Patent Publication No. 20020048814, herein incorporated by reference].

RNA interference—RNA interference can be achieved using a polynucleotide, which can anneal to itself and form a double stranded RNA having a stem-loop structure (also called hairpin structure), or using two polynucleotides, which form a double stranded RNA.

For hairpin RNA (hpRNA) interference, the expression vector is designed to express an RNA molecule that hybridizes to itself to form a hairpin structure that comprises a single-stranded loop region and a base-paired stem.

In some embodiments of the invention, the base-paired stem region of the hpRNA molecule determines the specificity of the RNA interference. In this configuration, the sense sequence of the base-paired stem region may correspond to all or part of the endogenous mRNA to be downregulated, or to a portion of a promoter sequence controlling expression of the endogenous gene to be inhibited; and the antisense sequence of the base-paired stem region is fully or partially complementary to the sense sequence. Such hpRNA molecules are highly efficient at inhibiting the expression of endogenous genes, in a manner which is inherited by subsequent generations of plants [See, e.g., Chuang and Meyerowitz, (2000) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 97:4985-4990; Stoutjesdijk, et al., (2002) Plant Physiol. 129:1723-1731; and Waterhouse and Helliwell, (2003) Nat. Rev. Genet. 4:29-38; Chuang and Meyerowitz, (2000) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 97:4985-4990; Pandolfini et al., BMC Biotechnology 3:7; Panstruga, et al., (2003) Mol. Biol. Rep. 30:135-140; and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0175965; each of which is incorporated by reference].

According to some embodiments of the invention, the sense sequence of the base-paired stem is from about 10 nucleotides to about 2,500 nucleotides in length, e.g., from about 10 nucleotides to about 500 nucleotides, e.g., from about 15 nucleotides to about 300 nucleotides, e.g., from about 20 nucleotides to about 100 nucleotides, e.g., or from about 25 nucleotides to about 100 nucleotides.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the antisense sequence of the base-paired stem may have a length that is shorter, the same as, or longer than the length of the corresponding sense sequence.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the loop portion of the hpRNA can be from about 10 nucleotides to about 500 nucleotides in length, for example from about 15 nucleotides to about 100 nucleotides, from about 20 nucleotides to about 300 nucleotides or from about 25 nucleotides to about 400 nucleotides in length.

According to some embodiments of the invention, the loop portion of the hpRNA can include an intron (ihpRNA), which is capable of being spliced in the host cell. The use of an intron minimizes the size of the loop in the hairpin RNA molecule following splicing and thus increases efficiency of the interference [See, for example, Smith, et al., (2000) Nature 407:319-320; Wesley, et al., (2001) Plant J. 27:581-590; Wang and Waterhouse, (2001) Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 5:146-150; Helliwell and Waterhouse, (2003) Methods 30:289-295; Brummell, et al. (2003) Plant J. 33:793-800; and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0180945; WO 98/53083; WO 99/32619; WO 98/36083; WO 99/53050; US 20040214330; US 20030180945; U.S. Pat. No. 5,034,323; U.S. Pat. No. 6,452,067; U.S. Pat. No. 6,777,588; U.S. Pat. No. 6,573,099 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,326,527; each of which is herein incorporated by reference].

In some embodiments of the invention, the loop region of the hairpin RNA determines the specificity of the RNA interference to its target endogenous RNA. In this configuration, the loop sequence corresponds to all or part of the endogenous messenger RNA of the target gene. See, for example, WO 02/00904; Mette, et al., (2000) EMBO J. 19:5194-5201; Matzke, et al., (2001) Curr. Opin. Genet. Devel. 11:221-227; Scheid, et al., (2002) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA 99:13659-13662; Aufsaftz, et al., (2002) Proc. Nat'l. Acad. Sci. 99(4):16499-16506; Sijen, et al., Curr. Biol. (2001) 11:436-440), each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

For double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) interference, the sense and antisense RNA molecules can be expressed in the same cell from a single expression vector (which comprises sequences of both strands) or from two expression vectors (each comprising the sequence of one of the strands). Methods for using dsRNA interference to inhibit the expression of endogenous plant genes are described in Waterhouse, et al., (1998) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:13959-13964; and WO 99/49029, WO 99/53050, WO 99/61631, and WO 00/49035; each of which is herein incorporated by reference.

According to some embodiments of the invention, RNA intereference is effected using an expression vector designed to express an RNA molecule that is modeled on an endogenous micro RNAs (miRNA) gene. Micro RNAs (miRNAs) are regulatory agents consisting of about 22 ribonucleotides and highly efficient at inhibiting the expression of endogenous genes [Javier, et al., (2003) Nature 425:257-263]. The miRNA gene encodes an RNA that forms a hairpin structure containing a 22-nucleotide sequence that is complementary to the endogenous target gene.

Thus, the present teachings provide for a transgenic plant or a part thereof comprising the plant expression construct as described herein as well as isolated plant cell or a plant cell culture comprising the plant expression construct as described herein.

The present teachings also relate to processed products produced from the plants, plant parts or plant cells of the present invention. Such processed products relate to food, animal feed, beverages, construction material, biofuel, biodiesel, oils, sauces, pastes, pastries, meal and the like.

It is expected that during the life of a patent maturing from this application many relevant hexokinases and guard cell specific cis-acting regulatory elements will be developed and the scope of the terms used herein are intended to include all such new technologies a priori.

As used herein the term “about” refers to ±10%.

The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, “includes”, “including”, “having” and their conjugates mean “including but not limited to”.

The term “consisting of” means “including and limited to”.

The term “consisting essentially of” means that the composition, method or structure may include additional ingredients, steps and/or parts, but only if the additional ingredients, steps and/or parts do not materially alter the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed composition, method or structure.

As used herein, the singular form “a”, “an” and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. For example, the term “a compound” or “at least one compound” may include a plurality of compounds, including mixtures thereof.

Throughout this application, various embodiments of this invention may be presented in a range format. It should be understood that the description in range format is merely for convenience and brevity and should not be construed as an inflexible limitation on the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the description of a range should be considered to have specifically disclosed all the possible subranges as well as individual numerical values within that range. For example, description of a range such as from 1 to 6 should be considered to have specifically disclosed subranges such as from 1 to 3, from 1 to 4, from 1 to 5, from 2 to 4, from 2 to 6, from 3 to 6 etc., as well as individual numbers within that range, for example, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. This applies regardless of the breadth of the range.

Whenever a numerical range is indicated herein, it is meant to include any cited numeral (fractional or integral) within the indicated range. The phrases “ranging/ranges between” a first indicate number and a second indicate number and “ranging/ranges from” a first indicate number “to” a second indicate number are used herein interchangeably and are meant to include the first and second indicated numbers and all the fractional and integral numerals therebetween.

As used herein the term “method” refers to manners, means, techniques and procedures for accomplishing a given task including, but not limited to, those manners, means, techniques and procedures either known to, or readily developed from known manners, means, techniques and procedures by practitioners of the chemical, pharmacological, biological, biochemical and medical arts.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention, which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable subcombination or as suitable in any other described embodiment of the invention. Certain features described in the context of various embodiments are not to be considered essential features of those embodiments, unless the embodiment is inoperative without those elements.

Various embodiments and aspects of the present invention as delineated hereinabove and as claimed in the claims section below find experimental support in the following examples.

EXAMPLES

Reference is now made to the following examples, which together with the above descriptions illustrate some embodiments of the invention in a non limiting fashion.

Generally, the nomenclature used herein and the laboratory procedures utilized in the present invention include molecular, biochemical, cellular and recombinant DNA techniques. Such techniques are thoroughly explained in the literature. See, for example, “Molecular Cloning: A laboratory Manual” Sambrook et al., (1989); “Current Protocols in Molecular Biology” Volumes I-III Ausubel, R. M., ed. (1994); Ausubel et al., “Current Protocols in Molecular Biology”, John Wiley and Sons, Baltimore, Md. (1989); Perbal, “A Practical Guide to Molecular Cloning”, John Wiley & Sons, New York (1988); Watson et al., “Recombinant DNA”, Scientific American Books, New York; Birren et al. (eds); methodologies as set forth in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,666,828; 4,683,202; 4,801,531; 5,192,659 and 5,272,057; “Cell Biology: A Laboratory Handbook”, Volumes I-III Cellis, J. E., ed. (1994); “Nucleic Acid Hybridization” Hames, B. D., and Higgins S. J., eds. (1985); “Transcription and Translation” Hames, B. D., and Higgins S. J., eds. (1984); “Animal Cell Culture” Freshney, R. I., ed. (1986); “Immobilized Cells and Enzymes” IRL Press, (1986); “A Practical Guide to Molecular Cloning” Perbal, B., (1984) and “Methods in Enzymology” Vol. 1-317, Academic Press; “PCR Protocols: A Guide To Methods And Applications”, Academic Press, San Diego, Calif. (1990); all of which are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. Other general references are provided throughout this document. The procedures therein are believed to be well known in the art and are provided for the convenience of the reader. All the information contained therein is incorporated herein by reference.

Example 1 Materials and Methods

Plant Material and Growth Conditions

Experiments were conducted using WT tomato (Solanum lycopersicum cv. MP-1), isogenic independent transgenic homozygous tomato lines expressing different levels of the Arabidopsis AtHXK1 (35S::AtHXK1) [as previously described by Dai et al. (1999)], isogenic transgenic homozygous lines with antisense suppression of the tomato LeHXK1, 2&3 genes, isogenic transgenic homozygous lines expressing GFP or AtHXK1 under the control of the KST1 promoter, and the ABA-deficient mutant Sitiens (Dai et al., 1999) (S. lycopersicum cv. Ailsa Craig).

Independent antisense-HXK tomato lines, αHK1 and αHK2, were generated following transformation of MP-1 with an antisense construct of StHXK1 (X94302) expressed under the 35S promoter. The potato StHXK1 shares over 80% sequence identity with LeHXK1, 2&3 and conferred suppression of LeHXK1, 2&3 (FIG. 4A). Arabidopsis (Col.) and tomato (MP-1) lines that express GFP or AtHXK1 specifically in guard cells (GCGFP and GCHXK lines, respectively) were generated following transformation with GFP or AtHXK1 expressed under the KST1 promoter (Muller-Rober et al., 1995). Independent transgenic homozygous lines for each construct were then identified. The tomato plants were grown in a temperature-controlled greenhouse under natural growth conditions and the Arabidopsis plants were grown in a walk-in growth chamber kept at 22° C., with an 8-h light/16-h dark photoperiod.

Stomatal Measurements

Stomatal aperture and density are determined using the rapid imprinting technique described by Geisler and Sack (2002). This approach allows to reliably score hundreds of stomata from each experiment, each of which is sampled at the same time. Light-bodied vinylpolysiloxane dental resin (Heraeus-Kulzer, Hanau, Germany) is attached to the abaxial leaf side and then removed as soon as it dries (1 min). The resin epidermal imprints are than covered with nail polish, which removed once it had dried out and serves as a mirror image of the resin imprint. The nail-polish imprints are put on glass cover slips and photographed under bright-field microscope. Stomata images are later analyzed to determine aperture size using the ImageJ software (www.rsb.info.nih.gov/ij/) fit-ellipse tool or any other software that can process and analyze images. A microscopic ruler is used for the size calibration. Additional information can be obtained from the software such as stomata width, length, area, perimeter etc.

To assess stomatal responses, leaflets are cut and immediately immerse in artificial xylem sap solution (AXS) (Wilkinson and Davies, 1997) containing 100 mM sucrose (Duchefa Biochemie) with or without 20 mM N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG, Sigma-Aldrich), 100 mM or 200 mM glucose (Duchefa Biochemie), 100 mM or 200 mM fructose (Sigma-Aldrich), 100 mM 2-deoxyglucose (Sigma-Aldrich), 10 mM or 100 mM mannose (Sigma-Aldrich), 100 mM sorbitol (Sigma-Aldrich) or 100 mM or 200 mM mannitol (Duchefa Biochemie). The sorbitol and mannitol treatments serve as non-metabolic osmotic controls. Imprints are taken 3 h after immersion and stomatal aperture is analyzed. Different plant species can be used as well as, AXS solutions, treatment solutions and different timings to our decision.

Gas Exchange Analysis

Gas exchange measurements are assayed using a Li-6400 portable gas-exchange system (LI-COR). Plants are growing under favorable or stressed conditions, and measurements are conducted on fully expanded leaf, 5^(th)-6^(th) from top in the case of tomato. All measurements are conducted between 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM. We are inducing photosynthesis under saturating light (1000-1200 μmol m⁻² sec⁻¹) with 370 μmol mol⁻¹ CO2 surrounding the leaf (Ca). The amount of blue light is set to 15% photosynthetically active photon flux density to optimize stomatal aperture. The leaf-to-air VPD (Vapor pressure deficit) is kept at around 1 to 2.5 kPa and leaf temperature is kept at around 25° C., during all measurements. Once a steady state is reached, measurements are done. It is possible to tune each of the above mentioned parameters. Each measurement contains data of photosynthesis (μmol CO₂ m⁻² s⁻¹), transpiration (mmol H₂O m⁻² s⁻¹), Stomatal conductance (mol H₂O m⁻² s⁻¹), and calculated instantaneous water use efficiency (μmol CO₂ mmol⁻¹ H₂O). Additional data obtained from each measurement are mesophyll conductance for CO₂ (mol CO₂ m⁻² s⁻¹ bar⁻¹), electron transport rate, calculated from PS (photosystem) II quantum yield and internal CO₂ concentrations (Ci).

For stomatal conductance (g_(s)) measurements the leaf conductance steady-state porometer LI-1600 (LI-COR, Lincoln, Nebr.) is used according to manufacture instructions.

Whole-Plant Transpiration Measurements

Whole-plant transpiration rates and relative daily transpiration (RDT) are determined using a wide-screen lysimeter-scale system, which allows measurements of up to 160 plants simultaneously. Plants are planted in 3.9-L pots and grow under controlled conditions. Each pot is placed on a temperature-compensated load cell with digital output and is sealed to prevent evaporation from the surface of the growth medium. A wet vertical wick made of 0.15 m² cotton fibers partially submerged in a 1-L water tank is placed on a similar load cell and use as a reference for the temporal variations in the potential transpiration rate. The output of the load cells is monitored every 10 s and the average readings over 3 min are logged in a data logger for further analysis. The output data includes whole plant transpiration, plant weight, light intensity, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), temperature, stomatal conductance, water use efficiency and additional environmental and physiological parameters. The whole-plant transpiration rate is calculated by a numerical derivative of the load cell output following a data-smoothing process (Sade et al., 2010). The plant's daily transpiration rate is normalized to the total plant weight and the data for neighboring submerged wick and these figures are averaged for a given line over all plants (amount taken up by the wick daily=100%). Water use efficiency is calculated from the daily weight added against the daily water loss for each plant. Plants RDT is monitored under different growth conditions to our decision: Normal irrigation, drought, salt treatment and more. It is possible to shift growth conditions on a daily bases and to monitor plants responses.

RNA Extraction, cDNA Generation and Quantitative Real-Time PCR Expression Analysis (Based on Goren 2011, Kandel-Kfir 2006)

Tissue samples are snap-frozen and homogenize in liquid nitrogen. RNA is extracted using the EZ-RNA kit (Biological Industries, Kibbutz Bet Haemek, Israel), with up to 500 μl of frozen homogenized tissue per extraction tube. At least four independent extractions are performed for each tissue set. The extractions are carried out according to the manufacturer's protocol, including two optional washes in 2 M LiCl. RNA pellets are than suspended in 25 μl DEPC-treated H₂O and treated with DNase (Ambion, Austin, Tex., USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions. RNA presence is confirmed by gel electrophoresis and DNA degradation is confirmed by PCR. RNA (≦1 μg) from each sample is than reverse-transcribed to cDNA using MMLV RT (ProMega, Madison, Wis., USA) in a 25-μl reaction, with 2 μl random primers and 1 μl mixed poly-dT primers (18-23 nt). All cDNA samples are diluted 1:8 in DEPC-treated water.

Real-time reactions are prepared using SYBR Green mix (Eurogentec S.A., Seraing, Belgium) in 10 μl volumes with 4 μl diluted cDNA per reaction, two replicates per cDNA sample. Reactions run in a RotorGene 6000 cycler (Corbett, Mortlake, New South Wales, Australia), 40 cycles per run, with sampling after each cycle. Following an initial pre-heating step at 95° C. for 15 min, there are 40 cycles of amplification consisting of 10 s at 95° C., 15 s at 55° C., 10 s at 60° C. and 20 s at 72° C. Results are than interpreted using RotorGene software, two duplicates per sample. Data are normalized using SlCyP as a reference gene (cyclophilin—accession no. M55019). Primers used for amplification: SlCyP—CGTCGTGTTTGGACAAGTTG (SEQ ID NO: 1) and CCGCAGTCAGCAATAACCA (SEQ ID NO: 2). The primers for SlHXKs (LeHXKs) are as follows: for SlHXK1-GACTTGCTGGGAGAGGAGT (SEQ ID NO: 3) and AAGGTACATTGAATGAGAGGCA (SEQ ID NO: 4); for SlHXK2-GTCCTCCCATCTTCCCTTG (SEQ ID NO: 5) and CCCAAGTACATACCAGAACAT (SEQ ID NO: 6); for SlHXK3-GCGATATTATCACCTCTCGTG (SEQ ID NO: 7) and CTGCTTCTCTCCGTCTTTAAA (SEQ ID NO: 8); and for SlHXK4-GCTGAGGACACCTGATATATG (SEQ ID NO: 9) and GATCGGATTTTACCCCAGCTA (SEQ ID NO: 10).

Protein Extraction and Analysis of Hexokinase Activity

Protein extraction from plant leaves is performed with 1 to 2 g of plant tissue homogenized in 4 volumes of extraction buffer (50 mM Hepes, pH 7.6, 1 mM EDTA, 15 mM KCl, 1 mM MgCl2, 1 mM phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 3 mM diethyldithiocabamic acid, and 0.2% PVP). The mixture is centrifuged for 25 min at 16,000 g at 48 C., and the supernatant is brought to 80% ammonium sulfate saturation. After centrifugation, the pellet is resuspended in 0.5 mL of washing buffer (50 mM Hepes, pH 7.5, 1 mM EDTA, and 1 mM DTT), desalted on a G-25 Sephadex column (55×11 mm), and used as a crude enzyme extract for subsequent enzymatic analysis.

Hexokinase activity is measured by enzyme-linked assay according to Schaffer and Petreikov (1997). The assays contain a total volume of 1 mL of 30 mM Hepes-NaOH, pH 7.5, 2 mM MgCl2, 0.6 mM EDTA, 9 mM KCl, 1 mM NAD, 1 mM ATP, and 1 unit of NAD-dependent glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH from Leuconostoc mesenteroides; Sigma). To assay glucose phosphorylation, the reaction is initiated with 2 mM glucose. Reactions are conducted at 37° C., and absorption at 340 nm is monitored continuously. (For additional information see Dai et al. 1999, Schaffer and Petreikov, 1997).

Monitoring Nitric Oxide Production in Guard Cells

Detection of nitric oxide (NO) levels in stomata is performed as follows:

Epidermal peels are prepared and incubated in MES buffer [25 mM MES-KOH, pH=6.15 and 10 mM KCl (MES, 2-(N-morpholino)-ethane sulfonic acid; Sigma-Aldrich] with or without 20 mM NAG, for 2.5 h under steady light, and then loaded with 60 μM NO indicator dye, DAF-2DA (4,5-diaminofluorescein diacetate; Sigma-Aldrich), diluted in MES buffer with or without 20 mM N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG, Sigma-Aldrich) and left for an additional 50 min. Then, the peels are washed with MES 3 times and re-incubated for 30 min in the buffer (control, set as 100% fluorescence) or in 100 mM sorbitol, 100 mM sucrose and 20 mM NAG. The peels are then photographed under a microscope (see Materials and Methods, “Confocal microscopy imaging”). Three to four biological repeats containing 20-30 stomata each are included in each experiment and each experiment is repeated several times. Images are analyzed using the ImageJ software histogram tool to evaluate fluorescence intensity and the fit-ellipse tool to determine stomatal aperture. It is possible to use epidermal strips from different species, use different treatments solutions and different timings, all to our decision.

Confocal Microscopy Imaging

Images are acquired using the OLYMPUS IX 81 (Japan) inverted laser scanning confocal microscope (FLUOVIEW 500) equipped with a 488-nm argon ion laser and a 60×1.0 NA PlanApo water immersion objective. Nitric oxide-DAF-2DA (4,5-diaminofluorescein diacetate; Sigma-Aldrich) fluorescence is excited by 488-nm light and the emission is collected using a BA 505-525 filter. GFP is excited by 488-nm light and the emission is collected using a BA 505-525 filter. A BA 660 IF emission filter is used to observe chlorophyll autofluorescence. Confocal optical sections are obtained at 0.5-μm increments. The images are color-coded green for GFP and magenta for chlorophyll autofluorescence.

Thermal Imaging

Leaf temperature is a reliable tool for determine transpiration variation among different conditions and different plant species. High temperatures are associated with closed stomata and low transpiration, while low temperature points out for open stomata and high transpiration. For thermal imaging, leaves are imaged using a thermal camera (ThermaCAM model SC655; FLIR Systems). Pictures are later analyzed using the ThermaCAM researcher pro 2.10 software. The experiments are repeated several times. Data are means±SE from five biological repeats per line; four leaves are analyzed per plant.

Use of KST1 as a Guard Cell Specific Promoter

The KST1 potassium channel in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) has been shown to be expressed specifically in guard cells (Muller-Rober et al., 1995). Later, by GUS activity and staining assay it has been demonstrated that KST1 promoter segment can be used to express genes exclusively in guard cells (Plesch et al., 2001). Using this knowledge, transgenic tomato and Arabidopsis plants were generated overexpressing Arabidopsis hexokinase1 (KST::AtHXK1) or GFP (green fluorescence protein) (as a control for exclusive expression) specifically in guard cells in the following procedures:

1. Creation of binary vector containing an insert of AtHXK1 cDNA under KST1 promoter followed by terminator. 2. Creation of binary vector containing an insert of GFP gene under KST1 promoter followed by terminator. 3. Plant transformation. 4. Identification of plants containing KST1::AtHXK1 trait.

Creation of a Binary Vector Containing an Insert of AtHXK1 cDNA or GFP Under KSTI Promoter Followed by Terminator.

The binary vector pGreen0029 was used (Hellens et al., 2000b) for transformation into tomato and Arabidopsis plants. The KST1 promoter was ligated upstream the AtHXK1 coding sequence (isolated by (Dai et al., 1995) or GFP followed by a terminator (See FIGS. 17A-B).

Example 2 Sucrose Stimulates Stomatal Closure

To examine the effect of Suc on stomata, intact wild-type (WT) tomato leaflets were immersed in artificial apoplastic solutions (Wilkinson and Davies, 1997) containing either 100 mM Suc or 100 mM sorbitol, a non-metabolic sugar used as an osmotic control, and measured stomatal aperture. Suc decreased stomatal aperture size by 29% relative to sorbitol (FIGS. 1A, B). Sucrose is a disaccharide that has to be cleaved. It may be cleaved by cell wall (apoplastic) invertases, yielding glucose (Glc) and fructose (Fru) in equal proportions (Granot, 2007) and resulting in additional extracellular osmolarities approaching 200 mOsm/L, as compared to the 100 mOsm/L of the original Suc added. We, therefore, compared the effects of 100 mM sucrose, 100 mM Glc+100 mM Fru and 200 mM Glc or Fru with the effect of 200 mM mannitol, which was used as an additional osmotic control. All of the sugar combinations decreased the size of stomatal apertures, as compared to the effect of 200 mM mannitol (FIG. 1C), supporting an osmotic-independent role for sugars in the regulation of stomatal closure.

Example 3 Sucrose Stimulates Stomatal Closure Via Hexokinase

Sucrose may be cleaved by either apoplastic (extracellular) invertase or enter the cells via sucrose transporters and then be cleaved by intracellular sucrose-cleaving enzymes to yield the hexoses Glc and Fru. The hexoses Glc and Fru must be phosphorylated by hexose-phosphorylating enzymes (Granot, 2007). In plants, hexokinases (HXK) are the only enzymes that can phosphorylate Glc and may also phosphorylate Fru (Granot, 2007, 2008). HXKs are intracellular enzymes known to play both kinetic and sugar-signaling roles (Rolland et al., 2006). To examine whether Suc stimulates stomatal closure via HXK, the effect of Suc was tested in the presence of N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG), an efficient inhibitor of HXK activity (Hofmann and Roitsch, 2000). NAG almost completely abolished the effect of Suc and prevented stomatal closure, supporting a role for HXK in the regulation of stomatal closure (FIG. 1B).

Example 4 Increased Expression of HXK Enhances Stomatal Closure

To further explore whether HXK mediates stomatal closure, the effect of Suc was examined on well-characterized transgenic tomato plants expressing the Arabidopsis HXK 1 (AtHXK1) under the control of the global non-specific 35S promoter (Dai et al., 1999). The stomatal aperture of AtHXK1-expressing plants (the HK4 line, which has a level of HXK activity that is 5 times higher than that of WT plants) was reduced by 21% relative to the control plants even under the control conditions (100 mM sorbitol) (FIG. 1B), indicating that increased expression of HXK induces stomatal closure. The addition of Suc caused the stomata to close even further (FIG. 1B) and the HXK inhibitor NAG abolished the closing effect of Suc, further supporting a role for HXK in the regulation of stomatal closure (FIG. 1B).

Example 5 Direct Correlation Between HXK Activity, Stomatal Closure and Reduced Transpiration

To examine the effect of HXK on tomato stomata, the stomatal apertures and conductance of tomato lines expressing increasing levels of AtHXK1 were measured. (The HK37, HK4 and HK38 lines have levels of HXK activity that are 2, 5 and 6 times higher than those of WT plants, respectively) (Dai et al., 1999). The stomatal densities of the AtHXK1-expressing lines are similar to those of WT plants (Table S1), yet both stomatal aperture and conductance were significantly reduced, in direct correlation with the level of AtHXK1 expression (FIGS. 2A, 2B). Furthermore, continued measurement of transpiration over the course of the day revealed that AtHXK1 lowered the transpiration rate per unit leaf area in the AtHXK1-expressing lines, in correlation with the level of AtHXK1 expression (FIG. 2C), so that the cumulative whole-plant relative daily transpiration per unit leaf area (RDT) was clearly negatively correlated with HXK activity (FIG. 2D).

To rule out the possibility that the observed decrease in transpiration was the result of inhibitory effects of AtHXK1 on root water uptake or stem water transport, reciprocal grafting experiments were performed. HK4 shoots were grafted onto WT roots and WT shoots were grafted onto HK4 roots (FIG. 3A). Continued measurements of the transpiration rates and cumulative whole-plant relative daily transpiration per unit leaf area of the grafted plants indicated that decreased transpiration was generally associated with HK4 shoots, with the roots having only minor influence (FIGS. 3B, 3C). To further examine the effect of HK4 stems on transpiration, triple-grafted plants were generated in which HK4 interstock replaced a portion of the stem of WT plants (FIG. 3D). The HK4 interstock had no effect on RDT (FIG. 3E), indicating that the decreased transpiration of AtHXK1-expressing plants was the result of reduced transpiration by the leaves and not reduced water uptake by the roots or attenuated transport through the stem. The effect of AtHXK1 on leaf transpiration further indicates that HXK controls stomatal behavior that affects the transpiration of intact whole plants.

Example 6 Suppression of HXK Inhibits Stomatal Closure

The role of HXK in stomatal closure was further examined using tomato and Arabidopsis plants with antisense suppression and knockdown mutants of HXK, respectively. Four HXKs are known in tomato plants, three of which (LeHXK1, 2 and 3) are mitochondria-associated HXKs similar to the sugar sensor AtHXK1 (Granot, 2007, 2008). Unlike the stomatal closure observed in tomato plants expressing high level of AtHXK1 (FIGS. 2A, B), stomatal closure in tomato lines (αHK1 and αHK2) with antisense suppression of LeHXK1, 2&3 (FIG. 4A) was diminished in response to Suc treatments (FIG. 4B). Similarly, the Arabidopsis AtHXK1-knockout gin2-1 mutant had higher stomatal conductance and a higher transpiration rate, as compared to wild-type control plants (FIGS. 8E, F), supporting the hypothesis that HXK plays a role in the regulation of stomatal closure.

Example 7 HXK Mediates Stomatal Closure Independent of Downstream Metabolism of the Phosphorylated Sugars

To examine whether downstream metabolism of the phosphorylated sugars is required for stomatal closure, the effects of mannose (a glucose epimer at the second carbon atom) and 2-dexoxyglucose (2-dG—a glucose analog) were tested. Both of these sugars are phosphorylated by HXK, but 2-dG is not further metabolized and mannose is poorly metabolized (Klein and Stitt, 1998; Pego et al., 1999). Both mannose and 2-dG reduced stomatal aperture (FIG. 5). A lower concentration of mannose (10 mM) also reduced stomatal aperture more than 100 mM glucose (FIG. 5), in line with previous observations that mannose is more potent than glucose with regard to HXK-mediated sugar effects (Jang and Sheen, 1994; Pego et al., 1999). Moreover, the closure effect of 10 mM mannose further supports an osmotic-independent role of sugars in the stimulation of stomatal closure. The results with mannose and 2-dG suggest that HXK stimulates stomatal closure independent of downstream metabolism of the phosphorylated sugars.

Example 8 Sucrose Stimulates an ABA-Signaling Pathway in Guard Cells

It has previously been shown that the sugar-signaling effects of HXK, such as the inhibition of photosynthesis and growth, are mediated by abscisic acid (ABA) [for an updated review see Rolland et al. (2006)], a well-known phytohormone that also induces stomatal closure. Therefore, it was speculated that Suc might modulate guard-cell aperture via the HXK and ABA within guard cells. ABA-signaling in guard cells is mediated by the rapid production of nitric oxide (NO), which is required for ABA-induced stomatal closure and serves as an indicator of stomatal-closure stimuli (Garcia-Mata et al., 2003; Neill et al., 2008). To examine the effect of Suc on the ABA-signaling pathway in guard cells, NO levels were monitored within guard cells in response to applications of Suc. Epidermal peels were incubated with Suc and monitored using the fluorescent NO indicator dye diaminofluorescein diacetate (DAF-2DA). Applications of 100 mM sorbitol had no effect on NO levels in guard cells (FIG. 6A). However, the application of 100 mM Suc resulted in a 3.5-fold increase in guard-cell fluorescence, indicating a rapid increase in NO levels, which was correlated with stomatal closure (FIG. 6A). The guard cells of untreated HK4 (AtHXK)-expressing line) epidermal peels exhibited high NO levels, similar to those of Suc-treated WT epidermal peels (FIG. 6B), and the addition of Suc to the peeled HK4 epidermis led to even more intense fluorescence (FIG. 6B).

To further examine the involvement of HXK in the production of NO in guard cells, the HXK inhibitor NAG was used with epidermal peels. NAG not only inhibited the effect of Suc and blocked stomatal closure (FIG. 1B), it also prevented the production of NO (FIG. 6C). Washing out NAG with 100 mM Suc led to the resumption of NO production within less than 30 min (FIGS. 6D, E). These results suggest that Suc elicits a guard cell-specific NO response via HXK.

To verify that ABA is indeed required for the stomatal NO response to Suc, the same experiments were conducted with the ABA-deficient tomato mutant Sitiens, whose stomata are always open (Neill and Horgan, 1985). Unlike what was observed for the WT plants, treating Sitiens epidermal peels with 100 mM Suc did not result in any increase in fluorescence or stomatal closure, indicating that there was no production of NO (FIG. 6F). However, treating Sitiens peels with externally supplied ABA did trigger the production of NO (FIG. 6F) and stomatal closure. These findings indicate that Sitiens's guard cells retain their ability to respond to externally supplied ABA by producing NO and that only the absence of ABA production in the Sitiens mutant prevents Suc-triggered NO production and stomatal closure. This observation confirms that Sitiens stomata do not respond to Suc due to this mutant's ABA deficiency and that ABA is a vital mediator of the stomatal response to Suc.

Example 9 Guard-Cell Specific Expression of ATHXK1 Induces Stomatal Closure and Reduces Transpiration of Tomato and Arabidopsis Plants

To examine the role of HXK specifically in guard cells, tomato and Arabidopsis plants were generated that express AtHXK1 under the KST1 guard-cell specific promoter (Muller-Rober et al., 1995). The specific expression of the KST1 promoter in tomato and Arabidopsis guard cells was verified by expression of GFP under the KST1 promoter (GCGFP lines, FIGS. 7A-E). Expression of the KST1 promoter was specific to guard cells in all of the examined plant organs and was not detected in organs that do not have stomata, such as roots (FIG. 7E). Guard-cell specific expression was recorded from early seedling development, as observed in the hypocotyls of seedlings (FIG. 7D), through the stages in which leaves are fully expanded (FIGS. 7A-C).

Unlike the expression of AtHXK1 under the 35S promoter (Dai et al., 1999; Kelly et al., 2012), the expression of AtHXK1 under the guard-cell specific KST1 promoter (GCHXK lines) had almost no negative growth effect (FIGS. 8A, D). Yet, expression of AtHXK1 under the KST1 promoter reduced both stomatal conductance and transpiration in both tomato and Arabidopsis plants (FIGS. 8B, C, E, F). These results strongly support the hypothesized specific role of HXK in guard cells, regulating stomatal closure.

Example 10 GFP Expression Under the Control of the FBPase Promoter is Specific to Mesophyll Cells

To discriminate between HXK effects in guard cells versus mesophyll cells the present inventors have created transgenic tomato and Arabidopsis plants expressing HXK under a mesophyllpromoter FBPase (Peleg et al., 2007). The specific expression of FBPase promoter was demonstrated with transgenic tomato and Arabidopsis plants expressing GFP under control of this promoter (designated MCGFP, FIG. 9). Several independent homozygous Arabidopsis and tomato lines with high expression of FBPase::AtHXK1 (named MCHXK plants) were identified.

Example 11 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Reduces Whole Plant Transpiration and Increases Water Use Efficiency, as Determined Using Gas Exchange Analysis System

Using the LI-COR gas exchange system the present inventors have analyzed 10 GCHXK independent lines and discovered a striking increase in water use efficiency in those plants (FIGS. 10A-D). Our data clearly shows that while photosynthesis remained unchanged (FIG. 10C), stomatal conductance (indicating stomatal aperture, FIG. 10B) and transpiration (FIG. 10A) were reduced by 20% and 15% respectively, thus improving water use efficiency from 1.36 in WT to 1.78 in GCHXK lines (FIG. 10D).

Example 12 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Reduces Whole Plant Transpiration and Increases Water Use Efficiency, as Determined Using Lysimeter Scales System

To evaluate water use efficiency in GCHXK plants the present inventors used the precise and sensitive lysimeter scales system, which measures plant weight accumulation and total plant water loss during long lasting experiments, and can monitor more than 160 plants simultaneously under varied irrigation treatments (FIGS. 11A-C). Two independent GCHXK transgenic lines (that exhibited high WUE when measured by LI-COR (FIGS. A-D 10)) were analyzed. The present inventors have discovered that relative daily transpiration of these lines was lower than WT throughout the entire experiment (20 days) (FIGS. 11A-C). Plant weight accumulation and growth were not affected. As a result, there was about 20%-30% increase in WUE in GCHXK lines compare to WT plants.

Example 13 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Reduces Whole Plant Transpiration Rate and Stomatal Conductance, without any Negative Effect on Growth, Thus Enhancing Water Use Efficiency

Using lysimeter scales system we further analyzed water saving and WUE in GCHXK plants, which displayed high WUE when measured by LI-COR (FIGS. 10A-D) and by lysimeter (FIGS. 11A-C). Several parameters were monitored. Parameters for water loss: transpiration rate, stomatal conductance (g_(s)); parameters for growth: total plant weight, total plant leaf area and environmental parameters: light intensity, vapor pressure deficit (VPD). It was found that along the day, the transpiration rates normalized to total leaf area were correlated with environmental changes (light intensity and VPD, FIGS. 12E and 12F respectively). Transpiration rates of GCHXK plants were significantly lower compared with those of WT along the day (FIG. 12A). Accordingly, stomatal conductance was found to be reduced as well (FIG. 12B) proving that in GCHXK plants, water are saved and stomata are more closed. Moreover, by measuring total plant leaf area and weight (FIGS. 12C and 12D respectively), the present inventors discovered that even though plants have consumed less water (FIG. 12A) growth was not impaired, and was even improved as in the case of GCHXK 12 line. Saving water without affecting plant growth improves whole plant water use efficiency.

Example 14 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Enhances Drought Tolerance

To monitor plants behavior under stress conditions the lysimeter scales system was used. After irrigation was fully stopped, plants were exposed to drought stress, which gradually increased each day throughout the experiment. Transpiration rates of WT and GCHXK plants were analyzed for nine consecutive days (FIG. 13). During the first 3 days GCHXK plants transpired less than WT, in line with normal conditions behavior (FIGS. 11A-C; 12A-F), indicating stress was only moderate at that time. However, in the following days (4 and 5), a transition between WT and GCHXK transpiration rates was observed (FIG. 13, *) and WT transpiration was steeply dropped compared with GCHXKs, indicating that WT plants are more sensitive to drought. As seen in moderate stress (days 5 and 6) as well as in severe stress conditions (days 7 and 8), GCHXK transpiration is less sensitive to water limitation compare to WT, displaying slower decline in transpiration throughout the experiment. These results indicate that GCHXK plants have better tolerance to water shortage and that under mild-stress conditions these plants can still function normally. Drought tolerance was also detected while monitoring relative daily transpiration (RDT) of WT and GCHXK plants under drought conditions (FIG. 11A). While shifting from irrigated to drought conditions (FIG. 11A, days 10-11, magnified), a steep reduction in transpiration was observed for WT plants (red arrow). However, GCHXK transpiration was only moderately affected when exposed to drought (green arrow), indicating that these plants have better tolerance to drought.

Example 15 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Improves Yield Production

To examine the effect of GCHXK on yield, fruits number of GCHXK plants was monitored. Neither of the lines exhibited reduced yield, even though transpiration of these lines was found to be lower (FIGS. 10-12). On the contrary, in few lines fruit number was even higher than control (FIGS. 14A-B).

Example 16 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Improves Yield Production Under Limited Water Supply Conditions

For a wide-range yield production assay, plants were grown in a controlled semi-commercial greenhouse under four different water stressed-irrigation regimes. Plants were irrigated either 25% above the recommended irrigation amount (125%), the recommended irrigation (100%) and deficit irrigation (75%, 50% irrigation regimes, FIG. 15A). Fruits were collected and cumulative fruit numbers and total fruit weight of each plant were documented (FIGS. 15B-C). As clearly seen, GCHXK on yield was dramatic. Compare to WT, GCHXK plants had significantly higher yield (fruit number and total fruit weight under all irrigation regimes. Yet, deficit irrigation did not alter fruit number per plant but reduced fruit weight. Interestingly, GCHXK fruit weight under fully stressed conditions (50% irrigation) was higher than control plants at 100% irrigation. GCHXK plants have also better tolerance to water limitation. When lowering the irrigation from 100% to 75%, fruit weight of GCHXK plants was reduced by only 16% while that of WT control plants was reduced by 39%. Hence, in addition to more yield under normal (100%) irrigation conditions (FIGS. 14A-B and FIG. 15B), GCHXK plants also have better tolerance (higher yield) to limited water supply. Together with the transpiration results (FIG. 13), these results indicate that specific expression of HXK in guard cells saves water, increases water use efficiency and improves yield production, not only under normal, but also under drought conditions as well.

Example 17 Elevated Expression of Hexokinase in Guard Cells Reduces Whole Plant Transpiration, Induces Stomatal Closure and Increases Water Use Efficiency in Arabidopsis

Thermal imaging and gas-exchange analysis were used to determine stomatal aperture, transpiration and WUE in Arabidopsis plants expressing HXK specifically in guard cells (GCHXK, FIGS. 16A-F). The present inventors have discovered that in GCHXK plants, stomatal conductance and transpiration (FIGS. 16A and B respectively, FIG. 8E-F) are significantly reduced compare to WT. Additionally, by using thermal imaging technique, it was found that the leaf temperature of GCHXK plants was higher than WT, which indicates that stomata are more closed (FIG. 16F). In addition, while transpiration was reduced, photosynthesis rates (FIGS. 16C), as well as the mesophyll conductance to CO₂ (gm, FIG. 16D) were not affected. Moreover, growth was not affected as well (FIG. 8D). Overall, GCHXK plants had higher water use efficiency (FIG. 16E). These results demonstrate that the same transgenic insertion of hexokinase under guard-cell specific promoter used in the case of Tomato (Solanaceae family) is universally applicable while affecting stomata and increases water use efficiency in the case of Arabidopsis (Brassicaceae family) as well, and that this technique could be implemented in other species as well.

Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.

All publications, patents and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated in their entirety by reference into the specification, to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein by reference. In addition, citation or identification of any reference in this application shall not be construed as an admission that such reference is available as prior art to the present invention. To the extent that section headings are used, they should not be construed as necessarily limiting.

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1. A plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a hexokinase under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element.
 2. A plant expression construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a nucleic acid agent for silencing expression of a hexokinase, wherein expression of said nucleic acid agent is under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element. 3-4. (canceled)
 5. The plant expression construct of claim 1, wherein said guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element is a guard-cell specific promoter.
 6. The plant expression construct of claim 5, wherein said guard-cell specific promoter is KST1 promoter.
 7. A method of regulating plant stomata conductance, the method comprising modulating in the plant the level and/or activity of a hexokinase in a guard cell specific manner, thereby regulating plant conductance.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein said modulating is upregulating.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein said upregulating is effected by introducing the nucleic acid construct comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a hexokinase under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element into the plant.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein said modulating is downregulating.
 11. The method of claim 9, wherein said downregulating is effected by introducing into the plant a nucleic acid silencing agent under a transcriptional control of a guard cell-specific cis-acting regulatory element.
 12. A method of decreasing plant stomata conductance, the method comprising introducing into a cell of a plant the nucleic acid construct of claim 1, thereby decreasing the stomata conductance of the plant.
 13. A method of increasing water use efficiency of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct of claim 1, thereby increasing water use efficiency of the plant.
 14. A method of increasing tolerance of a plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct of claim 1, thereby increasing tolerance of the plant to drought, salinity or temperature stress.
 15. A method of increasing biomass, vigor or yield of a plant, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct of claim 1, thereby increasing the biomass, vigor or yield of the plant.
 16. A method of increasing tolerance of a plant to biotic stress, the method comprising introducing into a cell of the plant the nucleic acid construct of claim 1, thereby increasing tolerance of the plant to biotic stress.
 17. A transgenic plant or a part thereof comprising the plant expression construct of claim
 1. 18-19. (canceled)
 20. The part of the transgenic plant of claim 17, being a seed.
 21. The part of the transgenic plant of claim 17, being a leaf.
 22. The part of the transgenic plant of claim 17, wherein said seed is a hybrid seed.
 23. The method of claim 12, further comprising growing the plant under water deficient conditions or under salinity.
 24. (canceled) 